A/N: Here is the next installment of Till Death Do Us Part. Sorry for the long wait between chapters!

Chapter Five – Recruitments and Revelations

Once Carrow turned toward the board, Neville poked Hermione and whispered, "I didn't think it get any worse than Umbridge."

Carrow's shoulders stiffened and Hermione knew he had heard them. He turned around to face them, and Hermione gave him a steely look, but he paid no attention to her. His sole focus was Neville. Hermione would have cringed at the hard glint in his eyes, but what was even more frightening was his malicious grin.

"Longbottom is it?" He asked, and Neville nodded defiantly. "Hmm...I knew your parents. It was a long time ago of course, but they were never really stable company, if you get my drift?" Hermione, and the rest of the class, watched the pair anxiously, waiting. Neville's fists were clenches and turning white. His jaw quivered and he opened his mouth to retort, but Hermione subtly kicked him beneath the desk. He clamped his mouth shut, but Hermione's intervention was not as subtle as she thought it had been.

"Granger," Carrow said, smoothly averting the class's attention to her.

"Yes...Professor," Hermione said, forcing the words out of her mouth.

"You have just volunteered yourself to help me out with a demonstration," he said. Hermione's stomach twisted at the eager expression on his face. "This is a particularly useful non-verbal spell. The caster uses a slicing motion across the victim, and if done correctly a trail of purple flames should appear. I believe you are familiar with the spell I am referring to Granger?"

Hermione nodded, unable to speak. She could acutely remember when Dolohov cast that very spell on her in the Department of Mysteries. It was apparent that Death Eaters were adept not only in the Dark Arts but also in gossip. Had Hermione not been trying not to tremble in fear, she would have pointed this out to Carrow. As it was she refrained.

Hermione did not think he could actually curse her, not in front of the whole class! But he raised his wand, and Hermione tightened her grip on her own wand stashed beneath her robes, preparing to defend herself. The room was deadly quiet and Carrow seemed to thrive on the fear in the room. Then suddenly someone cleared his throat pointedly. Carrow and Hermione both looked up in surprise at the source of the noise. Draco Malfoy.

The entire class turned to stare, but he seemed oblivious to that as he gave Carrow a cross look. The two were clearly having some sort of silent dispute – one that Carrow lost if his angry growl was anything to judge by. He lowered his wand in exasperation, and turned to glare at Hermione instead.

"Ms. Granger," he said. His voice was smooth as honey, as it had been at the start of class, but now it was clearly a conscious effort. "Disrupt my class again and there will be consequences," he turned to the rest of the class, his eyes avoiding Malfoy's, "that goes for all of you! Class dismissed." There was an immediate hustle to get out of the classroom. Chairs scraped across the floors and books were thrown hap hazardously into bags as the Gryffindors fled the room. Even the Slytherins appeared unsettled and they all shot Draco curious looks on their way out. Draco was the only one who looked completely at ease. He lounged in his chair, the front two legs off the ground, looking bored as he waited for his classmates to file out.

Hermione hesitated as she left the room and watched him approach Carrow's desk. Lingering out of eyesight she pretended to drop her bag and quickly stooped down, retrieving an Extendable Ear from its depths.

"A word Amycus?" Draco asked, though his tone was demanding.

"Ahh Mister Malfoy," Amycus stated casually, as if he had not seen Draco waiting for him. "I see you have become attached to your Mudblood bitch already. And here I was thinking the Malfoys still had standards." There was a long pause. Hermione almost pulled back in fear of getting caught, but what she heard next was worth the wait. Draco lowered his voice, and was just audible through the Extendable Ears.

"The Dark Lord has plans for her. Or have you forgotten that?" Draco's voice was venomous, and Hermione flinched at both his tone and the meaning behind his words. She was so surprised that the Dark Lord was going to target her that she did not notice Draco's approaching footsteps until it was too late.

She reeled in the Extendable Ear and was in the process of swinging her bag over her shoulder when Draco saw her, and a look of horror crossed his face. His eyes flashed angrily and his mouth twitched in apparent rage. He breezed past her and, not knowing what possessed her, Hermione ran after him. She was driven by anger and shock as she trailed him down the corridor. What could Voldemort possibly have in store for her?

"Malfoy!" Hermione yelled as he continued to evade her.

"Sod off Granger."

"What were you talking to Carrow about?"

"None of your damn business!"

"I heard my name Malfoy. So you were talking about me and it is my business," Hermione snapped. He spun around to face her at last, and Hermione stepped back in surprise. He was taller and broader than she remembered, and she was suddenly aware that they were alone in the hallway. Hermione quickly slipped her hand into her robes and gripped her wand tightly. Draco noticed this and smirked fleetingly, but his amusement was quickly replaced with a sombre expression.

"Look Granger," Draco said, and Hermione could almost hear pity in his voice. "You really don't want to meddle in this. Don't ask questions and you won't get answers you don't want to hear." He began to walk away, but Hermione persisted.

"What's going on Malfoy?" She raised her voice again, and Draco looked over his shoulder anxiously at Carrow's classroom. He shushed her, and her voice lowered a fraction. "If Voldemort," she began, and rolled her eyes at Draco's flinch, "has plans for me I deserve to know." Draco made an aggravated sound, a cross between a sigh and a growl.

"You are so stubborn," he said as he led her into an empty classroom and sealed the door behind them. He hesitated and remained silent, so Hermione tried to get the ball rolling.

"Is it something about the Marriage Law?"

"The Marriage Law is a scam," Draco scoffed. "Mudbl-" Draco stopped hastily at Hermione's icy glare and cleared his throat. "Muggleborns are being forced to marry each other so that they are easier to track, and to reduce the odds of them producing magical children." Hermione's mouth opened in surprise.

"That doesn't make any sense," she said, "Both Muggleborns would have the magic gene, so their chances of having a magical child are just as good as two purebloods, actually better considering that most purebloods end up marrying their relatives."

"Don't complicate things. That's the general idea, but there is more to it." Draco responded in irritation. "But we are not discussing that." Hermione opened her mouth to retaliate, but he spoke over her. "Stop interrupting. It's rude." Hermione sputtered angrily, for once, unable to frame a coherent sentence.

"Now, if you want me to talk, you are going to have to cooperate," Draco said in a condescending manner. Hermione bristled, she hated being treated like a child. Especially by Draco Malfoy. And just because he thought he, and all other purebloods, were better than her.

"Don't talk down to me!"

"I will talk to you however I please," Draco sneered, "Or I won't talk at all."

Hermione sighed in defeat. She needed to know what Voldemort had in store for her. It could cost both her life and Harry's mission. She took a deep calming breath and motioned for him to continue.

"Good, I wasn't sure if you were even capable of closing your mouth," Draco said. Hermione bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from retorting. "Now we were discussing the Dark Lord's plans for you. You're not stupid. You should have realized he would want you on his side eventually. Especially now that Potter has abandoned you." Hermione made an involuntary sound at that, but he ignored it. "Don't deny it. He's left you here defenceless and alone. The Dark Lord can offer you protection." Draco knew that she was much too noble to ever go to the dark side, but he tried what had worked on him anyway. Although safety, he had quickly learned, was an ambiguous term. The Dark Lord promised that his family would be 'safe' and by safe he meant that he would not kill them on the spot.

"Voldemort should have realized that it will never happen!" Hermione had snapped, and words tumbled out of her mouth in a sea of rage. "I will always be loyal to Harry and to Dumbledore and to doing what's right. There is no way I will ever help him. I'd die first, and trust me I will take some people down with me! Why would I ever choose to help the man that is slaughtering people like me? And while he is squashing the magic out of Muggleborns is he just going to overlook that I'm a Mudblood? Like he pretends he is a pureblood?"

"No he's not," Draco said, raising his voice just enough to silence her rant. "He plans on 'fixing' your blood status by having you marry a Pureblood." Hermione looked confused, for what Draco imagined to be the first time in her life. He waited for the penny to drop, for a look of comprehension to cross her face. But none came. He would have to spell it out for her. "He wants you to marry me." The room was silent for a moment. A moment that stretched on for what felt like eternity to both Draco and Hermione.

"Is this some type of twisted joke?" Hermione asked, breaking the silence at last. "Because it really isn't funny."

"I'm not laughing either," Draco said dryly, "But for some reason people seem to enjoy screwing up my life. Actually, I could direct you to several people who find our circumstance hysterical. Amycus, for example, and-"

"Shut up Malfoy," Hermione said quietly, but her voice trembled giving away her fear. She paused and seemed to return to her normal self. At least the version of her Draco was used to seeing. She crossed her arms stubbornly and glared at him. "I'm not marrying you. Not in a million years. Not even if hell freezes over. Never."

"You sure know the way to a man's heart," Draco snorted. He was relieved at her anger. Anything was better than the broken girl that had stood before him moments ago. It reminded him too much of himself going into his sixth year when his father was in prison. "Trust me I'm revolted too, and I have much more reason to be." Her wand almost smacked his nose as she whipped it out. He went cross eyed as she held it between his eyes. He was pretty sure she was not capable of murder, but he was still pissed about having her wand in his face.

"Don't kill the messenger," Draco said. He grabbed her wrist before she could protest. She winced as his fingers bit into her flesh, but his grip stayed firm. Some part of his brain registered that her wrist was so tiny and delicate that he could break it with ease, and for some reason he loosened his hold slightly. Only to regret it a moment later when she yanked her hand away.

"Keep your hands off me Malfoy!"

"Trust me no one wants to touch you," Draco countered, "except maybe the Weasel, but he lives in a dump, so he clearly has no standards. And I may not want to touch your Mudblood body, but we are getting married. Neither of us have a choice in that matter. We'll both be dead if we don't."

Damned if I do, dead if I don't. Hermione thought to herself dismally. Her life flashed before her eyes. Either she would be dead at eighteen or live a life of torture being married to Draco Malfoy. Her breathing became heavy and tears welled in her eyes, so Hermione did the only thing she could. She ran. Out of the room and through the corridor. Down countless flights of stairs, through a secret passageway, and finally out of the castle doors.

A crisp fall breeze blew Hermione's hair away from her face as she ran across the grounds. She made it to the lake before the tears fell. She collapsed behind a clump of bushes and sobbed. She pressed her face into her arms and the smell of dewy grass filled her nostrils, but it did not soothe her. Luckily for Hermione the rest of the student body was occupied in classes or they would have heard hear sobs echoing across the grounds.

For the first time since Harry and Ron left, Hermione let her guard down and let herself cry for all the things she had lost in the past weeks. Her best friends. Her freedom. And now her future. She could not honestly go through with a marriage to Malfoy. But she also knew he was right, if she did not she would die. Part of her thought that was a better option. But she knew it was just a cowardly escape to her problems. Hermione was a fighter. She had fought alongside Harry and Ron since her first year. She would not give up now. Even if it meant losing Ron. Hermione cringed at the thought of his reaction to her marrying Malfoy. But it wasn't as if she was happy with the situation either.

Hermione did not know how long she stayed hidden in the bushes. After what felt like hours she ceased crying. She felt slightly better. Bottling up her emotions had taken too much energy. Hermione always felt better after a good cry. It was only then that she could think logically and not be driven by sudden impulses.

Hermione sat up and found that the sun was starting to set. Her stomach rumbled, but she ignored it. She needed to speak to Professor McGonagall immediately. She was the only one who could help Hermione now. She dusted the grass off her robes and walked slowly back to the castle drying her eyes as she went. She stopped in the loo and splashed cold water on her face. It seemed to help decrease the redness in her eyes. Hermione passed the Great Hall; it was filled with the sounds of students eating their dinner. Hermione paused, surely Professor McGonagall was there too. She decided she could wait to speak to her for a little bit longer. So Hermione entered the Great Hall and took a seat at the end of the Gryffindor table. She did not look for Ginny or Neville, and after filling her plate with Yorkshire Pudding, she pulled her Transfiguration book out of her bag and pretended to read. The others knew better than to bother her when she was engrossed in a book. Even though the words just blurred on the page and Hermione sat there staring at them blankly, lost in her own thoughts once again.

Draco had been playing with his food absently. His attention was continually drawn to the doors of the Great Hall every time a student entered. He did not want to admit that he was looking for Granger. He knew she had skipped class last period and now she was nowhere to be seen. He was becoming anxious that she had done something rash, like running away. The Dark Lord would not take that news well, even if they could easily track her down, and Draco would be the one to pay for it.

Finally he saw a mass of unruly curls and relief washed over him. She was safe for now, and so he was too. He stared attentively looking for signs of how she was reacting to the bomb he had dropped on her. Draco felt pathetic. His future was bound to her. Her actions now reflected on him. If she did something stupid, he would be held responsible. As far as Draco could tell she was completely unaffected by their chat. She was sitting at the Gryffindor table reading. Draco figured that was as good a sign as any. So he pushed his worries to the back of his mind and tucked into his dinner.

Hermione did not move from that position until well after the trifle had disappeared from her plate. It was only then that she noticed that most of the students had cleared out of the hall. She looked to the staff table and found that Professor McGonagall, too, had left. Hermione put her book back in her bag and stretched before making her way to the Headmistress' office. She avoided eye contact with anyone until she was facing the stone gargoyle and realized she did not know the password.

"Password?" The gargoyle asked peering at her curiously.

"Uh, kit kat?" Hermione said. She hoped that it had not changed since the last time she was here.

"Nope," the gargoyle responded, "You can't get in without the password or an appointment."

"But I really need to speak to Professor McGonagall," said Hermione.

"And I really need to get some fresh air," the gargoyle responded, "it seems we are both out of luck." Hermione sighed in exasperation. Professor McGonagall was steps away and she could not see her because of a stupid password. She could not even owl the Order without her mail being opened and there was no covert way of saying she was doomed to marry Malfoy. This was important damn it! Hermione wanted to curse out loud. She wanted to throttle the stupid gargoyle, which was ridiculous because it was a statue. This was urgent and she needed to talk to someone from the Order of the Phoenix...Hermione was struck with a sudden thought.

"What about Phoenix?" Hermione said slowly. The gargoyle raised its eyebrow. At least Hermione thought it did, but he was made of stone, and she was not sure if gargoyles even had eyebrows.

"No not phoenix," he said cryptically. Hermione knew she must be on the right track, so she tried again.

"Fawkes?" she asked. The gargoyle moved aside and Hermione bounded onto the moving staircase with renewed vigour. She knocked sharply on the door.

"Come in," McGonagall's voice called. Hermione entered and Professor McGonagall looked up in surprise. "Miss Granger, what's happened?" She moved from behind her desk and came to face Hermione.

"It's..." Hermione faltered, unsure how to begin. "I overheard Malfoy talking to Carrow about Voldemort's plans for me." Professor's McGongogall's eyes widened in alarm.

"Let me give us some privacy," she said, as she pulled out her wand and secured the door so that no one could enter or overhear. "Now explain everything."

Hermione did so. She told her everything from Carrow's display in class to her discussion with Malfoy. All though the story McGonagall pursed her lips more tightly, and by the end they were pale white. "Have a ginger snap," she offered once Hermione had finished. Hermione accepted and watched as McGonagall began to pace across the office.

"We must contact Alastor immediately," she said, "they have put us in a terribly dangerous position. We cannot have you of all people in Voldemort's hands." She moved to the fireplace and took a jar of silver powder off the mantle. Hermione watched as she threw the powder into the fireplace, calling out a place Hermione did not recognize. Soon enough though, Moody's head popped into view and McGonagall began speaking to him in hushed tones. A moment later she stepped back.

"He's coming," she said turning back to look at Hermione, "My fireplace is secure, but it is still better to discuss such matters in person." They waited in silence until the fireplace roared green and Moody came tumbling out.

"Has Ms. Granger finally decided to tell us what Potter is up to?" He grunted as he dusted soot off his robes.

"No Alastor," Professor McGonagall snapped, "This is much more pressing." She took a seat behind her desk, and Hermione and Moody followed suit, occupying the two chairs across from her. Moody raised his eyebrows clearly sceptical that any matter could be more important, but waited for McGonagall to proceed. "You-Know-Who is arranging for Hermione to be married to Draco Malfoy! She is being put in grave danger Alastor, and everything she knows will be at risk if he attempts to penetrate her mind."

"If she just told us-"

"Enough Alastor," Professor McGonagall intervened, "We could not help Potter even if we knew what it was that Albus left for him to do. We have wasted too much time on this. We need to focus on a way to help Ms. Granger." He fell silent at her words and the room remained quiet for a long time.

"Brilliant," Moody murmured at last. Hermione looked up in surprise hope filling her face. "He Who Must Not Be Named is not stupid, he is well aware of the trap we have just stepped into. I'm starting to think that the trace on girls was for the sole purpose of getting to Miss Granger."

"So we've been lead directly into this mess!" Professor McGonagall sighed in exasperation. "But that doesn't help us in moving forward. There has to be a way. Hermione could always refuse the Malfoy boy."

"He said we'll both be dead if we don't go along with it," Hermione said.

"Well that's settled then," Moody replied.

"It is most certainly not settled!" Professor McGonagall explained. "Alastor these people are murders. They are not going to let Harry Potter's best friend just slide along undetected. If she marries Draco Malfoy she is as good as dead."

"It seems as if that is the only outcome at this point," Moody replied briskly, "but casualties are inevitable at this point in the war." Professor McGonagall made an angry sound, but he spoke over her.

"Minerva I realize that this seems aggressive, but we are in a war. The Dark Lord has realized that Miss Granger is a valuable asset, one that we are currently wasting. Losing Snape was a huge blow to our side, but we now have the opportunity to replace him." Neither Hermione nor Professor McGonagall expected to hear this. Hermione was shocked into silence. She never imagined herself as part of the order, or part of the real fight against Voldemort. Her adventures with Harry were different. They were less strategic. Just doing what was right.

While Hermione took the surprise in silence, Professor McGonagall exploded, "She is a 17 year old girl! Dumbledore would never allow students to take part in this war, let alone be a spy!"

"Minerva we are going to lose this war!" Moody roared. "Dumbledore always wanted us to do what's best for the students. Granger is of age and in a terrible situation, but we need to make the best of it. If we don't, if we waste this opportunity, everyone will suffer because of it. You-Know-Who thinks she is valuable, and she will be, but we must ensure it benefits our cause."

"And you don't think he will suspect that? That she will spy for us?" Professor McGonagall asked resignedly. "Do you honestly believe that You-Know-Who will just accept that Harry Potter's best friend will turn to his side?"

"If Miss Granger is convincing I think we will be able to pull this off," he said. "You-Know-Who will not expect us to use her as a spy for the exact reasons you just gave me. He thinks we are above it. As you said Minerva, she is a seventeen year old girl, and he is already underestimating her."

"What if he really just wants me to spy on the Order?" Hermione asked, breaking her silence at last.

"I don't think he'll do that," Moody said as he watched her carefully. "He knows that you were too loyal to Potter and that would only tempt you. He won't trust you or speak openly in front of you. But any small detail you do hear or see could be a tool in the destruction of He Who Must Not Be Named. Potter and Weasley are on some sort of mission to stop him. What are you doing?"

"Now I think it is time I put my question to you, and you alone, Miss Granger," Moody said, ignoring the protests of Professor McGonagall. "Do you accept my offer? Will you marry Draco Malfoy and act as a spy for the Order of the Phoenix?"

Coming up in Till Death Do Us Part

Her eyes flew up automatically meeting a pair of grey ones across the hall that looked away quickly. Hermione frowned. Surely this was not his owl.