Twenty-five. Hermione

I could sense him as soon as my body relaxed; his feelings and emotions. He wasn't scared, but he was worried. He wasn't worried for his own good either; someone else was on his mind. I was on his mind.

I let my feelings guide me to the place I needed to be. I turned swiftly on the spot and thought of Draco and not before long landed smoothly outside a large building. I took a minute to take in my surroundings; something Tonks had warned me to do. She was an auror so I took her advice.

Not long after I had arrived Tonks had followed my path and landed heavily besides me, also looking at what surrounded her.

The old building was massive; it went back for what seemed like miles and must have held about 20 floors. It was unusual because it seemed to be situated in the middle of nowhere. It was perfect for the deatheaters hideout. The many windows were bordered up for as far as I could see and there seemed to be no door.

"Over here," Tonks whispered into my ear. She had her wand pointing towards what seemed like another part of the wall but I watched as her mouth moved in what seemed like a spell and eventually an opening appeared.

Tonks smiled nervously, happy that she had succeeded. "Dumbledore once taught me that," she said proudly. I made a mental note to ask her how to do it.

Twenty-two. Draco
Don't be sick…Don't be sick…

I concentrated on steadying my breathing; I refused to let them see me in such a state. My vision was blurring from the pain and I felt completely weak. I didn't know how much longer I would be able to cope for. It felt weird; being certain I was about to die, well, about to die inside. I knew there was no way for me to be saved. Hermione was my only hope and there was no way she'd be able to find this place, let alone get me out of here on her own.

I wasn't scared, I was worried. What if she did try and come to find me? The order would not help her and if they thought she was going to try and save me they'd find a way to stop her.

I had been taken into a room a guy had told me was the "prep room", whatever that meant. I assumed it was to prep me for whatever was about to happen. Voldermort wanted to get this transformation over and done with as soon as possible; I didn't realise it meant so soon.

I'd been tied to the same spot for god knows how long. Deatheaters randomly came to torture me using spells I hadn't even heard of. I'd become so weak I couldn't calculate how long I had been there. It could have been one day, it could have been 10. I didn't even have the strength to put up a fight.

Eventually another deatheater appeared and got me to dress into different robes; I assumed they were Voldermort's. I felt sick, physically and mentally, would I be able to stand all I would now witness?

My imagination went wild as I imagined what I, he, would do to Hermione. I fought back tears; becoming a deatheater had required me to forget about feelings but Hermione had brought them back out in me. I was not going to allow them to ridicule me any further. Not when it was all about to be over anyway.

Twenty-six. Hermione

We walked down corridor after corridor after corridor; everywhere looked the same. I was leading the way. I could tell we were getting closer because I was feeling more worried; really I was scared so I assumed Draco was still worried.

I stopped suddenly when my breath caught in my throat, I gasped for air as Tonks ran to my side. Pain was seeping through my body; there wasn't an inch of me that wasn't aching. A splitting pain shot through my head and I was pretty sure I let out a scream, but I couldn't hear it. My head felt like it was about to explode and I knew I was going to die; I had become certain of it in that short time, when it suddenly stopped.

I picked my shaking body up slowly, with the help of Tonks, and leant against a wall. When I spoke it made me ache all over, "What happened?" Tonks looked at me for a while as though in thought.

"It looked like the Cruciactus Curse," she answered with a clearly confused look on her face. "I don't understand, there's no one around?" I looked down at my hands before it dawn on me.

"Draco?" I whispered. Now that my body had stopped shaking slightly and relaxed I could feel him once again; he was in pain. I put a hand to my head and felt the cold sweat stick to it, "he's close." Tonks nodded her head but suddenly seemed alarmed.

"You screamed," she whispered frantically at me. I looked down embarrassedly; I knew how some people were stronger and bared it, like Harry. But I had never been under the Cruciactus Curse before, and I didn't want to be again.

"Hermione, if he's close, more deatheaters are close," she still whispered although I didn't see the point anymore as I understood what she meant. Had they heard me scream?

We both turned and took off quickly down the corridor, not running but certainly not walking; just wanting to get as far away from that place as possible.

As we continued down corridors I felt a pull, as though I was no longer guiding myself; did Draco know I was there? I knew Tonks didn't want to go in the direction of Draco yet but I couldn't resist heading towards him. I needed to see him, make sure he was alright.

Twenty-Three. Draco
What are you doing?

I could feel her, she was close. How stupid could you get? She couldn't just turn up there and what was she going to do? Demand that they let me go? She'd have been dead the moment they saw her. I frantically thought for her to turn back but the more I did that, the closer she seemed to be getting. I didn't know what to do anymore so I tried feeling nothing, hoping maybe it would cut off the link but it didn't work. I couldn't help but worry for her.

By now I was outside, right on top of a hill not far from the building I had been in minutes before. I was strangely reminded of pictures I had seen in old muggle books of Jesus' crucifixion. I was thinking this thought as Voldermort appeared from no where besides me. I only knew his presents because of the hairs standing on end on the back of my neck. Unlike normal wizards, there was no pop when he apperated, I didn't even know if it was apperating that he did. Maybe he had found a way to walk through dimensions or something, it wouldn't have surprised me one bit.

It was weird, I knew what was about to happen yet I couldn't help but let my mind wander on things that I didn't know about. I had been curious about dark magic since as long as I could remember, I couldn't deny that it interested me. I was about to know everything about it, once I was part of Voldermort. Technically he was about to become part of me but I doubted I would have much say in what my body did pretty soon.

Throughout my final thoughts as myself Voldermort had been rambling on to his deatheaters in a cult like way, and just when I realised that I really should have been listening, he turned to me.

Twenty-seven. Hermione

I was mere feet away from him, a quick spell could stun the nearest deatheaters and we could make a run for it. As though she could hear my thought Tonks shook her head at me silently mouthing not to make a move. How stupid was I? Like we'd be able to escape all these deatheaters; and Voldermort was there.

He was hideous. He did not even look human; more snake like. With slits for a nose and red eyes I was not surprised when I noticed all the deatheaters avoid his gaze, turning their eyes upon their feet.

Tonks was looking around us; I didn't know what she was doing until she turned around and pulled me with her. What was she doing? We couldn't go back now! I yanked my arm out of her grip and spun back round to run towards him but her hands clasped around my upper arm and she pulled my ear to her mouth. "Follow me," she hissed.

I took one last look at Draco and kept as low to the floor as I could. I needn't have taken a last look at him though as we made our way around the other side of the hill, closer to Draco and Voldermort.

"I don't think this is the time to be mouthing off," Lucius seethed at Draco. Voldermort raised a hand to silence Lucius and he fell quiet immediately. Coward.

"This is going to happen whether you like it or not Draco," Voldermort hissed mockingly in Draco's ear. As he brought his head back Draco spat in his face. I made to jump up but was pulled back as Voldermort pulled back his fist and punch Draco. He stumbled for a few minutes before falling heavily to his back and rolling backwards slightly so that he landed…Right by Tonks and me.

Tonks covered my mouth as I mumbled Draco's name. His hands and feet were tied and he looked terrible. His perfect pale complexion was tinged yellow and his platinum hair had lost its shine. A moan left his mouth and he lifted his head slightly catching sight of us for the first time.

Twenty-four. Draco
No…

All I could do was shake my head as she stared at me. I could see her struggling silently against a woman's grasp as she tried to get over to me and my eyes filled up. If they came down here to get me now, she'd be dead.

I strained my ears to listen for approaching footsteps but all I could hear was Voldermort rambling on to his followers. That was always his mistake. Hermione was released by the woman and withdrew her wand, waving it over the ropes so that I was free. I wanted nothing more than to collapse in her arms but I could no longer keep my head up, let alone the rest of my body.

"Come on Draco," Hermione whispered pleading with me to get up. I knew if I could we could have apperated out of there but my body was not listening.

I took it slowly. I knew we needed to move fast but we wouldn't be going anywhere if I didn't move. "Go Hermione," I said weakly. "They'll come down here for me any second now."

"I'm not leaving you Draco," she whispered fiercely to me. I knew I had to move. I knew there was no way that she was leaving without me and the only way for me to save her was for me to save myself. I put my hands out slowly in front me and pushed onto my knees. Hermione and the other woman placed their hands under my arms and heaved me up. This was it, now we were in plan view but it didn't matter anymore.

All I felt was a small spin and a tug just below my naval before my feet landed in where I assumed was the head quarters for the order. But I could still hear the deatheaters shouts and Voldermort's high pitched laugh as he watched his chance for survival slip away. Why had he laughed?

Twenty-eight. Hermione

Draco collapsed to the floor the moment we landed in the kitchen of Grimmauld place. Mrs Weasley let out a shriek as she stared down at his body and Tonks and Lupin rushed round to get some stuff to clean him up. Harry and Ron entered the kitchen and looked wide eyed at me.

"I just had to," I whispered with a pleading voice. Draco was slowly coming round and Lupin levitated him to the nearest room, followed by everyone else.

"You didn't have to you wanted to," Ron hissed at me once we got Draco onto a bed.

"I HAD TO!" I screamed at him. "I couldn't live without him." My voice had become a whisper once more as I sat on the edge of the bed smoothing Draco's cheek. His eyes flickered open and looked into mine; I gasped as I saw how dead they looked. Instead of the astonishing blue/silver they were clouded grey. I bent down and kissed him softly before crying into his shoulder.

"That's great," I heard Lupin mutter from the corner of the room. I lifted my head to see everyone stood together talking and this was when i realised.

"Have…have you found it?" I stuttered. Ron nodded and left the room as Harry turned to me.

"You have to choose whose side you're on Hermione." Harry stated.

I looked at him slightly shocked. "What are you talking about Harry? I'm on your side, I always have been."

"I mean our side? Or his?" He inclined his head towards Draco.

I opened my mouth completely lost for words. "That's not fair Harry," I finally managed to mumble. "Draco is on our side."

"How is he on our side?" Harry asked through gritted teeth as his voice shook with anger. "What has he ever done to prove that he's on our side huh? Measure it up; our side; nothing. Their side; he has the dark mark," he said walking up to Draco and lifting the sleeve of his left arm. His temper was quickly rising. "And he killed Dumbledore for Gods sake Hermione! How can you look past that?"

"I have not looked past that Harry. Why do you and Ron seem to think that I do not care about that? But you seem to forget that he did not kill Dumbledore Harry, you were there!"

"That's right I was there," Harry almost whispered. "And he didn't do it. Because he was to scared." His voice was quieter but it still shook as he turned and left the room. I wasn't giving up that easy.

"He's tried everything to undo what he's done Harry and I'm pretty sure he'll do whatever it takes."

"The only thing he's tried Hermione is to get into your knickers!" Harry spat back at me.

"Now that was out of order," Mrs Weasley said from behind Harry. Harry snapped his mouth shut and attempted to walk past her. "Why don't you give him a chance?"

"I can't believe you're saying this," Harry said just as shocked as I was.

"Harry, of all people you should know that people aren't always the way they appear to be."

"This is different," Harry whispered.

"How is it?" I asked. "How is this any different from the situation Sirius was in. Draco's done almost as little as he did. The only difference is that you've hated Draco since you met him. Just admit it Harry, you can't get past the school feud." I could see Harry bite down on his tongue and Ron appeared behind him. "And you to Ron. You can't forgive him because I'm with him and not you." I bit back as soon as I said it but it had to be done.

Harry nodded his head slowly, was that a good sign? "He killed that snake," I added hoping it would go for him.

Harry seemed slightly shocked but recovered quickly. "Ok Hermione, we'll give him a chance. But it doesn't mean I'm happy about it." I smiled so widely that my face hurt but I didn't care. I ran up to Harry and pulled him into a hug. He felt slightly hostile but it didn't matter anymore; Draco wasn't being turned in.