* ~ The Eighth Year Universe Series ~ *
PART TWO

Last Call for Sin

Chapter 5: There's Nowhere Else to Run

* ~ HOGWARTS CASTLE ~ *

The following evening the Room of Requirement gang put their plan into action. When Neville, Ginny, Luna, Seamus, Lavender, Parvati, Padma, Susan, and Hannah were all missing from an entire day of classes, questions began to be asked.

The Carrows sent out a search party, assuming that the group of students had somehow managed to escape from the school. They had no way of knowing that they were hiding in plain sight within the walls of the castle itself.

While the search party looked for the missing students, the Carrows used their own methods to ascertain their whereabouts. They brought in all of the friends' known associates and questioned them, mainly under the cruciatus curse. When none of them gave any information away, Alecto suggested to Amycus that it was time to put the Dark Tower back into use.

Draco had a reasonably good idea of where they had gone, but he said nothing and thankfully, the Carrows didn't ask him. He called a meeting, and the others snuck out after curfew that night to meet up in their bathroom.

"Oh, you've made it homely," Draco remarked sarcastically.

The corridor outside was still flooded, but Daphne had drained the bathroom and put a shield charm on the door to keep it that way. She had also cleaned the place up and transfigured some sofas.

"We've started to bring supplies in," Sadie said, "We're stockpiling things in the supply cupboard, just in case."

"That's not a bad idea," Theo admitted.

"Why did you call the meeting?" Blaise asked as he sat on one of the transfigured sofa's. He patted the spot next to him, and Daphne sat down. She let him put his arm around her shoulder and ignored Sadie's disapproving look.

"Because things are getting worse out there by the day," Draco said, leaning against one of the sinks, "The Carrows have just turned the Dark Tower back into a prison."

"The Dark Tower?" Sadie asked, "But that hasn't been used for a long time."

"Isn't that where they put Sirius Black in our third year?" Daphne asked.

"Yeah, in the top cell," Draco said with a nod, "It was used as a prison a long time ago, back when punishing students by torturing and imprisoning them was allowed. That top cell was for torture purposes, it's tiny, and it is open to the elements."

"And the Carrows are using it to put students in now?" Tracey asked. She shook her head angrily, "It's sick."

"Yeah," Theo frowned.

"From what I overheard, they converted the top room into three cells," Draco continued, "And I don't think they are using the top cell on the roof yet. But they threw some Hufflepuffs in there. They are hoping that they will tell them where the other rebels went."

"Do you think they escaped the school?" Daphne asked.

Draco shook his head, "No, they are in the school somewhere."

"What makes you so sure?"

"It's just a hunch, but I don't see Longbottom as the type to run away from a war, and Weaslette definitely isn't," Draco replied.

"Neither is Susan," Theo said with a frown.

"Susan?" Blaise asked. He raised an eyebrow at his friend, "You're on first name terms with a Hufflepuff?"

"He lost his virginity to that Hufflepuff," Sadie said, giving Theo a knowing look, "Around the back of greenhouse three, wasn't it?"

"Oh, Daphne, you're familiar with that hook-up spot," Tracey said, looking at her best friend knowingly.

Daphne rolled her eyes and gave Tracey the middle finger. Blaise smirked and tightened his grip on her shoulder.

Theo rolled his eyes too, "Yes, but we were friends too. She's far more like a Gryffindor than a Hufflepuff, and when you think logically about the people who disappeared, it makes sense."

"Does it?" Tracey asked.

Draco nodded, "Theo is right. Longbottom, Weasley and Lovegood are the leaders. Then you have the likes of Bones and Finnigan, who are the fighters."

"Abbott is the Healer," Daphne realised.

"What the hell are Brown and the Patils then?" Blaise asked.

"Fuck knows," Theo answered, "Collateral damage?"

Draco snorted, "You're right, Theo. They haven't run away. They are assembling a guerrilla task force."

"Which means at some point, they are going to have to surface to get their friends out of the tower," Theo said.

"And what do we do when they do that?" Pansy asked, surveying her friends warily, "Do we help them?"

"No," Draco replied instantly, "We can't openly help the light. It's too risky."

"But we don't actively work against them either," Theo said firmly, "This isn't black and white. We're students, and the people fighting for the light mean something to us. They aren't nameless Aurors; they are our ex-girlfriends, people we've kissed in broom cupboards, friends who we share a workbench with in Herbology. This isn't good versus evil. It's a fight to stay alive."

Draco smiled and was about to say that Theo's speech had been very empowering, but then his arm began to burn, and his stomach sank. He looked over at Theo and saw the same expression on his best friends face.

Both of them pulled their sleeves up and saw the mark burning red.

"Does that mean…" Pansy trailed off.

"We're being called," Draco said hoarsely.

"We need to go," Theo said firmly, "If we're late, it looks suspicious."

Draco nodded, "Together?"

"Together," Theo agreed.

They both pressed their index fingers onto the mark and disappeared in a swirl of black smoke.

"That's not good," Tracey said, her eyes on the spot where the two boys had been.

"No," Daphne agreed, "It isn't," she said, her eyes meeting Pansy's concerned ones.

* ~ MALFOY MANOR, WILTSHIRE ~ *

The meeting was generic. Draco refused to meet his father's eye as he and Theo sat down together at the large table in the dining room of his family home. Voldemort congratulated some Death Eaters on their high-profile kills, then his attention turned to Hogwarts and with it, Snape.

"Severus. I hear that friends of Harry Potter have escaped the castle," Voldemort said, his serpent-like eyes focusing on Snape.

Snape bowed his head, "Yes, my lord. We believe that they are on the run."

"Have they stolen anything of significance?" Voldemort asked.

"No, my Lord," Snape replied.

"Then let them run," Voldemort said cruelly, "Kill them on sight when they show up."

The other Death Eaters laughed and jeered at this, Bellatrix more so than others.

"Alecto, are the other students conforming?" Voldemort asked.

Alecto smirked, "Yes, my lord. Our team of Junior Enforcers are also doing well."

"Excellent," Voldemort said with a wicked smile, "Draco, please come forward."

Draco swallowed and got to his feet. He kept his head down as he walked towards Voldemort.

"I trust that you remember our conversation about you becoming my eyes and ears at Hogwarts, Draco?"

"Yes, my Lord," Draco replied.

Voldemort's smile was sinister, "Excellent. Legilimens!"

Draco grimaced as his mind was invaded. He focused very hard on the things that he wanted Voldemort to see. He thought about cursing the students who disobeyed; he thought about Theo torturing Neville in class. He thought about discussing the filthy mudblood that was Hermione Granger. He thought about a conversation he and Theo had had about putting Harry Potter's head on a spike outside the school gates. It all seemed to be going well until Pansy flashed through his thoughts, and with that brief slip, Voldemort was able to see the memory of them kissing in the clock tower. Draco fought with every ounce of his being to make sure that he did not hear the conversation that they had had that day, and he won. But in doing so, Voldemort found a blank spot in his memory.

"You have been obliviated, Draco."

Draco frowned.

"What are you hiding?" Voldemort asked, breaking the connection and turning his red eyes on the blond boy.

"Nothing," Draco replied because, in all honesty, he didn't know what he was hiding. He couldn't remember being obliviated, and he could not remember the memory that had been removed.

Voldemort held out his wand, "Crucio!"

Draco could withstand the curse when a Death Eater used it, but when Voldemort used it, it was unbearable. He screamed and fell to the ground, his body convulsing.

"What are you hiding from me, Draco?" Voldemort hissed.

"I don't know," Draco cried, embarrassed as tears filled his eyes.

"Nott," Alecto said, she got to her feet and trained her wand on Theo, "What are you hiding from us?"

"Nothing," Theo replied honestly, "I didn't obliviate him."

Alecto opened her mouth, but before she could cast the cruciatus curse, Theo's father rose to his feet and looked down at his son in disgrace, "I'll do it, Alecto."

Theo looked up at his father and had to try very hard to conceal the hatred in his eyes.

"Crucio!"

Theo cried out in pain and tried not to give his father the satisfaction of a scream of pain. He was a wicked man, though, and with a few twists of his wand and flicks of his wrist, he had Theo screaming louder than Draco. His body shook violently as he tried to suck in a breath.

When his father ended the curse, he kicked Theo as hard as he could and spat on him, "You are a disgrace to the family name," he hissed.

Alecto grabbed Theo's chin and forced him to look into her eyes, "Who obliviated him?"

"I don't know," Theo ground out through the pain.

"Stop," Voldemort said. He raised a hand, and Alecto let go of Theo.

"The rebels must have erased his memory," Voldemort said. He eyed Draco cautiously, "Alecto, Amycus: keep a close eye on these two at Hogwarts. Perhaps we ought to show young Draco what happens to those he loves when he does not comply."

Fear flashed through Draco's eyes, and that made Voldemort smirk, "Have a little fun with his young girlfriend, Pansy."

"Yes, my Lord," Alecto said. She grinned evilly at Draco and Theo. Then she left the room with her brother.

Draco and Theo were told to be seated once more. Then they were forced to sit through the rest of the meeting. Most of the information was insignificant, and the meeting dragged on for another hour. Draco tried his best to hide his worry for Pansy. With every minute that ticked by, they could be torturing her.

Eventually, Voldemort turned to the two Junior Death Eaters and said, "You two may leave. Your presence is no longer required."

"Yes, my Lord," Draco said as he got to his feet, "Sorry, my Lord."

Theo bowed his head as they walked out of the dining room. When the two boys got into the hall, they let out breaths and limped silently out of the Manor. Both of them were in far more pain than they would allow to show in front of Voldemort and the Death Eaters.

"Can you apparate?" Draco asked, gripping his side, his breath hitching.

"Just about, I think," Theo gasped, "You?"

Draco nodded, and they both used the magic of the dark mark to apparate into the corridor outside of the Slytherin common room. They limped in and knew that it was too late from the look on their friends' faces.

"Where is Pansy?" Draco asked quietly.

"The Carrows came in a while ago," Daphne replied, "They dragged her out, and we heard…"

"She was screaming," Sadie said quietly; it was clear that she had been crying.

"I'm going to kill them," Draco said, setting his teeth together.

"You need to be healed first," Tracey said firmly, "You won't survive another bout of torture otherwise."

"Just set my ribs then," Draco said, "Quickly!"

"But without a potion, it will hurt-"

"I don't care!" Draco snapped, "Just do it!"

Daphne shrugged, "Episkey!"

Draco recoiled in pain and grabbed the edge of one of the sofas.

"I did warn you," Tracey muttered.

Draco pulled himself up and took a breath, "I think I have a broken…" he trailed off and pointed his wand at his ankle, "Episkey!"

Then he cried out in pain, "Yeah, it was broken, alright. Tracey, fix Theo up. I need to go."

"Draco, you're going to get yourself killed!" Blaise called after him, but Draco ignored them and searched the dungeons for the Carrows and Pansy.

He followed the screams and found them in the potions classroom.

"Pansy!"

She lay in a heap on the floor. She was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily, her shirt was soaked with blood, and she was shaking uncontrollably.

"What did you do to her?" Draco hissed, looking up at Amycus Carrow.

"Nothing that I haven't already done to you," Amycus said coolly, "I do not like it when pupils talk back to me, Draco. You ought to know how that ends."

"Do whatever the hell you want to me, but do not dare touch her," Draco hissed in a low, dangerous tone.

"Whatever I want?" Amycus asked with a raised eyebrow.

Draco dropped his wand and stepped forward.

Amycus grinned, "Crucio!"

"Draco," Pansy groaned. She reached out but couldn't quite reach her wand.

"Just…go…" Draco said, gritting his teeth as the spell forced him to his knees and set his nerves on fire.

"I can't leave you here," Pansy objected weakly.

"Go, Pansy," Draco gasped, "I'll be…fine."

"Draco-"

"Go!" Draco roared.

Pansy scrambled to her feet and limped to the door. She looked back at him in concern but left the classroom.

Amycus laughed uncontrollably, "True love. It's cute."

"I mean it, Amycus," Draco said, pushing himself to his feet through the curse, "Do not touch her again."

"Oh, you think she got away?" Amycus asked. He laughed and threw Draco onto the ground with a casual flick of his wrist, "That's sweet. It would be a nice story if she got away, wouldn't it? She runs away to safety, and Draco's love survives the war. How does the story end? Do you get married and have beautiful babies together?"

Draco glared up at the man.

Amycus stood over him and grinned. He thrust his hand towards Draco and said an unknown incantation. Draco cried out in pain as intense pain throbbed through his leg.

"Ouch, that sounded sore," Amycus said calmly, "But I suppose getting your knee cap reversed would feel rather painful. Do you know what it feels like to have your entrails ripped out while you are still alive? I've meant to experiment with that one."

"What have you done with Pansy?" Draco gasped.

"Her? Oh, Alecto was waiting for her in the corridor," Amycus smirked, "She took her to the Dark Tower. We have one cell free for her, right at the top of the tower. I wonder how long she will last against the elements. It's nearly October…Alecto doesn't think she will make it through the night, but I think she might last two."

Draco didn't think he could hate anyone more than he hated his father, but these two Death Eaters were fast becoming his most hated enemies.

Amycus smiled and pressed his heel into Draco's chest. Draco gasped for air as the motion made it almost impossible for him to get air into his lungs.

"Don't even think about trying to get her out," Amycus said with a note of finality, "The tower is rigged with traps. You would only get yourself killed trying. Then you could be together for eternity. How's that for a love story?"

He shoved his foot into Draco's chest, and Draco began to choke.

Amycus laughed and removed his foot. Without another word, he left the classroom. Draco managed to turn his head to the side as he threw up a mixture of bile and blood. He coughed and gagged until he could reach his wand.

His hand shook as he aimed his wand at his knee, "Reverso."

He yelled as the spell reversed his knee cap to restore it to normalcy. He tried to push himself to his feet but cried out in pain the moment he put any weight on that leg.

All the same, Draco tried, and that was when the world swam in front of his eyes. The last thing he heard as the world around him turned black was Theo's voice calling, "Draco!"

When Draco opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the golden glimmer of the bathroom roof. He blinked the blurriness out of his eyes and sat up.

"Thank Salazar," Theo breathed. He reached out and gripped his friend's shoulder, "We nearly lost you there."

"He punctured one of your lungs," Tracey said from where she knelt on Draco's other side.

"Trace patched you up," Blaise explained.

Draco pushed himself against one of the sinks and breathed in slowly, "We need to save Pansy."

"You were on the verge of death a few minutes ago," Sadie said quietly.

"You're in no state to go on a rescue mission," Theo agreed.

"I have to," Draco said, passion burning in his eyes, "It's Pansy."

"I know," Daphne said. She stepped forward and looked him dead in the eye.

Draco looked at her pleadingly, "I need your help."

Daphne kept that stony expression on her face.

"Daphne," Draco sighed, "I know that I hurt you. Salazar knows, I fucked up."

Daphne crossed her arms and stared down at him.

"But Pansy is in the Dark Tower, and I can't get her out alone," Draco finished.

Daphne didn't say anything.

"I know I hurt you, Daphne, but…I love Pansy," Draco admitted, "And you were my best friend once. I want to get that back if I can."

Daphne sighed, "Fine."

Draco breathed a sigh of relief. He pushed himself to his feet and hugged her, "Thank you."

"I'm not doing it for you," Daphne said as she shoved him off, "I'm doing it for Pansy."

"That's good enough for me," Draco said honestly.

"If we're doing this, I'm in charge," Theo said firmly, "Because you nearly died earlier tonight, and you definitely can't remain objective, Draco."

Draco nodded, "What's the plan then, boss?"

"Listen up, gang!"

Everyone in the Room of Requirement fell silent. They all looked up at Neville, who was sitting on a desk.

"We got word from Nick this morning, the Carrows have imprisoned some of our friends in the Dark Tower," Neville said calmly. With a wave of his wand, a schematic of the Dark Tower appeared on the board behind him, "As you can see, the entrance to the tower is on the sixth floor. It has not been used for centuries, but it seems to have one cell at the top of the staircase. There is another cell on the roof, but we doubt that they will be using it because anyone up there would die of exposure very quickly."

"The Carrows are insane, don't rule anything out," Ginny warned him.

Neville nodded, "Our goal is to get in and get our guys out. They have Ernie, Anthony and Michael. We know that the tower is rigged with traps. The friar scouted it out for us earlier. There is a caterwauling charm at the bottom of the staircase that will alert the Carrows when someone steps over it. There is also a security troll on the sixth-floor corridor. Once we get into the tower itself, there is very little in the way of security."

"How do we get through the caterwauling charm?" Parvati asked.

"It will see through most disguises," Padma answered, "Disillusionment charms certainly won't work."

"Even an invisibility cloak wouldn't work," Neville admitted.

"We can't sneak past it," Luna spoke up, "So we need to disable it."

"Do you know how to do that?" Neville asked, looking at his friend in surprise.

"Of course I do," Luna said with a smile, "Daddy uses one on the house to keep the Nargles away."

"Of course he does," Ginny said. She grinned at Neville, "I love her."

"Me too," Neville admitted. He turned back to the Ravenclaw girl and said, "You're on the task force, Luna. Ginny, you are too because you're one of our best duellers."

Ginny nodded, "We want to take as few people as possible into the tower itself to avoid detection, but we will need someone to stand guard in the corridor outside."

"I suggest two people," Neville said.

Ginny looked around the room, "Susan and Seamus?"

"I would agree with that," Neville said.

"So we get to the corridor, take out the security troll. Luna disables the caterwauling charm, and Seamus and I stand guard while you guys save the day?" Susan summarised.

"Yep, any questions?"

Seamus raised his hand, "How do we take out the troll?"

Neville grinned and threw Seamus an explosive device, "That's where you come in, Seamus."

At this, Seamus grinned.

It was relatively easy for the Room of Requirement gang to get to the sixth-floor corridor where the security troll was patrolling. They only needed to use one secret passageway from an old bathroom across the hall from the Room of Requirement, and they came out in a disused classroom directly opposite the stairs to the Dark Tower.

It wasn't quite as easy for the Slytherins. They had much further to go to the sixth floor from their bathroom hideout on the second floor. They were confident of one thing; they could not use the grand staircase under any circumstances. It had a caterwauling charm set up on it after curfew, so using it would be suicide. Instead, they had to wind their way up the floors of the castle using secret passageways. They weaved their way up to the once-forbidden third-floor corridor. Then they had to sneak past Filch to slip into a secret passage that brought them out on the fifth floor. After a very close call with Peeves, they entered the final passageway, which brought them out in an old bathroom on the sixth floor. It had been used by Fred and George when they had set up an illegal shop one year, and abandoned Weasley products were still scattered across the floor.

They stood by the door and listened to the troll patrolling up and down the corridor. Theo turned to those who had come with them. Sadie and Tracey had been told to stay in their hideout so that they could heal Pansy when they returned.

"Blaise, once we get out there, I'm going to take down the troll," Theo whispered, "Then when we get to the entrance of the tower, Blaise and Daphne, you are going to stand guard."

They both nodded.

"Draco and I will go into the tower, get Pansy and get out," Theo finished, "Any questions?"

"How are you planning on taking down the troll?" Draco asked, watching his friend warily.

Theo pulled a Weasley device out of his pocket and smirked, "I've got it under control."

Daphne snorted in amusement.

"Let's go," Theo said. He opened the door and headed out. The others followed closely behind him.

When they got into the corridor, the troll had its back to them. Theo clenched his fist around the device and was about to throw it when a door at the other end of the corridor opened. Seamus stepped out, flanked by Neville, Ginny, Luna and Susan.

"What are you doing here?" Theo hissed. Security trolls were blind, but the moment it heard him, it turned around.

"Taking out the troll!" Seamus replied, "What are you doing here?"

The troll got confused and turned around again.

"No, I'm taking out the troll!" Theo exclaimed.

The two of them raised their hands; both of them were holding the same device.

In unison, they both threw the devices at the troll. The devices landed at his feet and released a high-pitched sound that wasn't audible to them but which made the troll grab his head and howl in pain.

Four stunners were thrown at the troll, some from the Slytherins and some from the Room of Requirement gang. It fell to the ground with a loud thump, and the Slytherins stepped over it to reach the others.

"What are you doing up here?" Neville asked them in disbelief.

"Getting Pansy out of the tower," Draco replied, "What are you doing here?"

"Getting our friends out of the tower," Neville answered.

A buzzing noise sounded, and an invisible barrier on the stairs fizzled out.

"Caterwauling charm disabled," Luna said dreamily.

Neville looked at the Slytherins cautiously, "We'll get our friends out, and you get your friend out, then we'll go our separate ways. Deal?"

"Deal," Draco answered.

"Oh, and don't say his name," Theo added, "There's a taboo on it. It will bring the Death Eaters to your location, even if that location is unplottable."

"Got it," Neville said, "Come on, we need to move fast. The Carrows must have caught some of this conversation with their listening charms."

Draco nodded.

"Guard the tower," Neville and Theo said at the same time.

The two boys caught each other's eye, "That was weird," they said in unison.

Neville frowned, and Theo cast his eyes over him suspiciously.

"Let's go," Neville said, turning to Ginny and Luna. The two girls nodded, and they followed Neville up the narrow staircase.

"Come on," Theo said to Draco.

Without another word, the two of them dashed up the stairs after the others.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at Susan, "Not the way I imagined catching up with an old friend."

Susan smiled, "How are you doing?"

"Well, I'm alive," Daphne shrugged.

"You two are friends?" Blaise asked curiously.

"We've known each other since we were kids," Daphne said with a shrug, "But we're not on the same side anymore."

"You're not on the dark side," Susan said honestly, her eyes meeting Daphne's, "You're not on the light side either, though."

"I'm on my own side," Daphne said calmly.

"And that's the problem," Susan said simply.

Seamus watched the conversation warily. He had always been more suspicious of Slytherins than most. The four of them fell silent as they cast their eyes along the corridor, hoping that the Carrows wouldn't show up until they had managed to get their friends out.

At the top of the staircase, they went their separate ways. Neville, Ginny and Luna began to use unlocking charms on the cells to get their friends out while Draco and Theo continued up the last few stairs to the roof.

The door to the roof wouldn't open with a simple unlocking charm, so Draco blasted it off its hinges instead.

"This is why I didn't let you be in charge," Theo muttered as they skated across the icy roof towards the iron-cast door into the tiny cell.

"Pansy," Draco breathed when he saw her lying on the wet ground. She was unconscious, her shirt was soaked with blood, and her body was wracked with shivers.

"Put a shield charm over her," Theo instructed.

"Protego!"

"Bombarda!"

The cell door was blasted off. Draco dashed in and picked Pansy up, "Pansy! Pansy! Wake up!"

"Come on," Theo said, skating over the ice towards the staircase, "We need to go."

Draco followed him, and they emerged onto the staircase behind Neville and his gang. Ernie didn't look too worse for the wear, but Anthony Goldstein and Michael Corner were a little slower as they limped down the staircase.

"Draco?" Pansy said weakly.

Draco looked down at her, "Sorry it took so long to get you out," he said while flashes of light bounced around the walls behind him, "I needed to get the cavalry on board."

Pansy passed out again after that, and Theo cursed loudly.

Draco looked up and realised that the flashes of light were from a searching spell determining how many people were in the tower.

"Fuck," Draco muttered, "That means they are at the bottom of the staircase, doesn't it?"

"From the sounds of duelling, I'm inclined to say yes!" Neville called from the front of the group, "We need to fight together if we want to get away from them!"

"He's right," Theo muttered.

"If we fight with him, we can't pretend anymore," Draco whispered, "They will know that we are traitors."

"I know," Theo said. His eyes met Draco's, "So are we going to do the right thing?"

Draco sighed, "If we must."

The moment they emerged onto the sixth-floor corridor, curses began to fly through the air, left, right and centre.

Several of them were against the Carrows, but they couldn't duel the way that those two could. They were still school kids at the end of the day, as much as they wanted to believe that they were more.

In the end, the Slytherins were cowards. When Alecto cornered Neville and began to torture him, they slipped away unseen and did not stop running until they reached their bathroom lair.

"Pansy!" Tracey exclaimed when she saw her friend's blood-soaked shirt.

Draco lay Pansy down on a makeshift bed in the middle of the floor, and Tracey ripped her shirt open. The blood was coming from several cuts that were now oozing a foul-smelling yellow liquid. Tracey began to shout out orders which they all followed dutifully.

She was the most adept Healer, so by the time she was finished, the cuts on Pansy's body were virtually gone, and her temperature had gone down. They all cleaned themselves up and took some time to catch their breath.

Draco knelt by Pansy's side and rested his head on her chest so that he could listen to her heartbeat.

"He loves her," Daphne whispered, ashamed of the tears that stung her eyes.

Tracey took her best friend's hand, "Yeah, he does."

Daphne swallowed and tore her eyes away, "So there is no use in being bitter. He loves her, and he never looked at me like that, so…that's all there is to it."

"There's a bigger picture, honey," Tracey said, drawing her friend in for a hug. She kissed Daphne on the cheek, "And you'll find someone who is a better fit for you one day."

Daphne very much doubted that, but she didn't voice that opinion. Instead, she pulled away from Tracey and walked over to Pansy.

Draco looked up when she knelt next to the dark-haired girl. Daphne smiled weakly at him and took Pansy's hand, settling down next to her friend.

Draco smiled back and turned his gaze to the girl that they had just rescued, the girl who he had told Daphne that he loved when he hadn't even mustered up the courage to say those words to her yet.

"Daphne?"

Daphne smiled down at Pansy as she opened her eyes and blinked a few times.

"I'm sorry for being such a bitch Pansy," Daphne said softly, "There's a war going on in this school, and if we want to survive it, we all need to be in it together."

Pansy smiled at her, "Thanks for getting me out."

"We all did," Tracey said, stepping into view. Sadie smiled from her friend's side.

Theo nodded, "We weren't going to leave you up there, Pans."

Draco leant down and kissed her lightly, "You're going to be okay, baby, just get some sleep."

Pansy nodded. She shut her eyes again and let out a shallow breath, "I love you, Draco."

Draco tightened his grip on her hand and rested his forehead against hers, "I love you too."

Daphne tore her eyes away from them and got to her feet, "We can't go back to the common room."

Theo shook his head, "We have targets on our backs now."

"When they realise that we are missing, they are going to target our family," Daphne said. She looked to Blaise, "We need to get the girls."

Blaise nodded, "Now?"

"Now," Daphne agreed, "The rest of you should stay here with Pansy. Blaise and I will get the girls out of the common room and bring them here. I expect the Carrows are still busy with Longbottom and his gang, so now is the best time to act."

Draco nodded, "Be careful," he said. He turned to Blaise and added, "And look after her."

Blaise held his hand out to Daphne, "I will."

Daphne grabbed the other mans hand and smiled, "See you soon," she said as they left the bathroom together.

Theo sighed and knelt on Pansy's other side, "What happens to us now?"

"We still have to go if he calls us to a meeting," Draco said darkly, "We can't avoid it or…"

"He'll kill us the minute we surface?" Theo asked, "Well, I think I'll take that chance. If the mark burns, I'll ignore it. Will you?"

"I…" Draco looked down at Pansy and hesitated, "I don't know," he finished.

"Then I suggest you work out where your loyalties lie," Theo said, a coldness to his voice that made Draco shiver.

Draco bowed his head but said nothing else as he watched Pansy's chest rise and fall with her shallow breaths.

* ~ TBC ~ *