DISCLAIMERS: I don't own it yet, but when I finally get around to that hostile takeover of the world, I'll own it all. Yes Mom, I will clean my room first.
CHAPTER EIGHT: THE CHAPTER THAT HAS NO NAME
The trip to the Fire Temple was long, and boring. Harry and Ron refused to speak to Draco (which made some problems, as they were forced to share a tent), Hermione was too nervous to speak to Draco, who refused to speak to anyone except Lili. And Lili refused to speak to anyone. So they were all relieved when after a week of broom traveling they finally reached Egypt. Eager to get some drinks, they charged at the first wizard bar they saw. As they ran in, Ron, in the lead, pulled up short, causing the other four to crash into him. They all ended up in a large pile in the doorway.
"Crimeny, Ron, whatd'ya do that for?" Lili moaned, sitting up and rubbing her bruised forehead.
"And whoever has their elbow in my ass, please move it," Draco added. Lili laughed and blushed, and moved her elbow.
But Ron was ignoring all of them. "Quick! Outside!" He grabbed Harry and Hermione and physically dragged them out of the bar, where he collapsed against the wall.
"Shit!" He swore, provoking a scolding from Hermione, which he ignored. "How could I be so dumb?" Draco opened his mouth, but shut it again when Lili gave him the Evil Eye. "That was Bill in there! He works over here in Egypt! He'll see me, and tell Mum, and she'll kill me!"
"What for?" Draco asked skeptically.
"I dunno, but she will, she's a mother, they always find some reason! I am so screwed..."
"No you're not. You simply haven't mastered the art of blackmail." They all turned to Lili, who was smirking. Harry was beginning to suspect that there was a very large devious side to her personality.
"Say what?" Ron finally asked.
"The art of blackmail. See, you two are brothers, therefore you must have something on him that he doesn't want your mom to find out. Tell him that if he tells your mom that we're here, you'll tell her whatever that is. Oh, and if you can get us a place to stay while you're at it, that would be very useful also."
Throughout Lili's advice, Ron had begun to grin. As she talked, that grin grew bigger, and brighter, until it was almost blinding. He nodded, and then, without a word, waltzed into the bar, and, approaching Bill from behind, sat down at the bar stool next to his brother. He tapped Bill on the shoulder.
"Yes, what can I do for you?" Bill turned away from the pretty Egyptian girl he had been chatting with, and stared, amazed, at his sixteen year old brother, suddenly shown up in the middle of Egypt. "Ron? What are you doing here? And why are you wearing Muggle clothes? You should be in school, not Egypt!"
Ron grinned, enjoying his brother's newfound lack of composure. "Should be, but not. Now, if you'd really like to know why not, we can always head to your place, and I'll explain there. And oh, if you tell Mum or Dad, I'll tell Mum about that tattoo you have on your bum."
Bill paled. "You wouldn't."
"Try me. It says 'Mari-'" Ron was cut short as Bill placed a hand firmly over his mouth.
"Fine, fine. Come on, I'll take you back to my apartment, and we can talk. But oh, wait just a minute." He ran back to the Egyptian girl and appeared to be copying down an address. "Okay, let's go." Bill set off down the street at a pace that only Ron, with his long legs, could match. The other four, who were shorter, had to run to keep up, and Bill noticed.
"Who are these people? I mean, I recognise Harry and Hermione, of course, but who's the other girl? And is that a Malfoy? Why are they with you?" Bill looked at Ron suspiciously, and Ron sighed.
"Bill, I'll tell you when we get to your apartment. I don't feel like explaining the whole thing right out in the street." Bill looked less than satisfied with this, but kept walking. He turned into a tiny alleyway, full of garbage cans and dumpsters. A rickety door at the end of the alleyway opened, and Bill waved to the man exiting.
"Hello, Bill. What's up?"
"Oh, nothing, Ashem. This is my brother, Ron, and these are his friends. They're here to talk to me." Bill's voice told them more than his words themselves did, and it was not pleasant. They entered the doorway, and were amazed at what was on the other side of it. It looked like a five-star hotel, huge, with bellboys and even a pool behind glass doors. Bill nodded politely to the doorman, and entered a door marked 12A, with "Bill Weasley" written underneath in gold ink.
Bill's apartment was modest, although Harry knew Bill made quite a bit of money, working for Gringott's. Bill sat down in a scarlet armchair, and gestured towards the striped couch, which the five teenagers sat down on. "Well?" The question had an undertone which said that they had better tell the truth. Ron sighed, and began to explain. When he got to what had happened at the Earth Temple, Bill's face took on a look of amazement.
"You trusted a Malfoy? You? Ron?" Draco smirked, and Ron shot him a death glare, not half as effective as Lili's.
"It wasn't like I had a choice. That girl doesn't take no for an answer." Lili smirked, and her exppression resembled Draco to the point where it made Bill a bit nervous. Harry, however, saw the light-heartedness underneath the smirk, something that wasn't present in Draco's face. Ron continued explaining, and Bill managed to hold in the rest of his amazement until Ron was finished.
"Okay, so what is it you need?"
Lili spoke up. "A place to stay, a guarantee that you won't tell your mom, and help finding a good deal on several flying carpets."
"Why the carpets?" asked Ron.
She shrugged. "Can't stand the damn brooms anymore." She and Bill negotiated for several minutes (Bill flatly refused to house a Malfoy, even if he was semi-reformed and it was only for one or two nights, it took her fifteen minutes to convince him), and finally he agreed to let them stay.
Bill was an excellent host, allowing the two girls to have his bedroom, the only one in the house, while he slept on the floor of the guest room with Harry, Ron, and Draco. After a short but violent squabble between the two Weasleys and Harry, a very disgusted Harry ended up with the sleeping bag next to Draco. But Draco didn't stay in it for too long.
As soon as the other three were asleep, Draco got up and dragged a blanket out into the living room. He tossed and turned on the sofa for a few minutes, trying to fall asleep. Then Lili came in.
She smiled wryly. "You sound like an elephant with a hernia when you snore, you know that?" She sat down on the end of the sofa, and Draco winced as she crushed his feet.
"What would an elephant with a hernia sound like?"
"Like you when you snore." She flashed her innocent grin at him, the same one she had used on McGonagall, forcing him to drop his ideas of hitting her with a pillow.
"Damn, I hate that face. Always wrecks a revenge plot."
"That's why I love it so much." Lili's train of thought drifted off its tracks, running over a farmhouse and slamming itself against a cliff in a spectacular burst of flame. "Hey Draco?"
"Yes?"
"Why do you act different around me? I can tell, around Harry, and Ron, and Hermione, you keep insulting them, and all that, you keep up the 'I'm your enemy, watch it' face, but you act almost normal around me. Almost."
Draco was very blunt about it. "You were the only person who gave me a real chance. Personally." Lili opened her mouth to ask for more explination, but she didn't have to bother, as he continued. "I mean, Dumbledore wanted us to work for the Light, but he was telling us as a group. I never wanted to be part of a group, a reason why I was reluctant to become a Death Eater, aside from that I don't want to become my father. You asked me, as an individual, and gave me a reason. I accepted."
Lili nodded, contemplating what he had said. Then, "Draco, are we friends?"
He looked surprised that she had asked, then nodded. "Yeah, I think we are. Even though you attacked me earlier this year."
She laughed mutedly. "Well, you thoroughly deserved it. And I seem to remember you turning Hermione into a toad."
"I'm not saying I didn't. And I didn't do it to hurt Granger, you know."
She shook her head violently, causing her waves of brown hair to fly all over the place. Draco suddenly noticed the exact shade of it, and thought to himself that the color suited her very nicely. "I'm not even getting into this with you. I'm going back to sleep." Draco had expected her to go back to the bedroom, but instead, she pulled up two chairs, and lay across them, head on one chair, feet on another.
"I let Hermione have the bed, and I can't sleep on the floor, it's too hard. So I'm sleeping in here tonight." Draco made no objection, he simply gave his best bad-boy grin, rolled over, and fell asleep.
(A/N) I wasn't sure if I should end it here, but I did. And here's the thing: since I did get a review saying romance would be good, I'll try it. I've never done it before (and actually, I haven't wanted to) but I think I'll try my hand at it. Sorry to disappoint HorseC10, but in my mind, Ron and Hermione are as good as married. I don't think I would be able to write H/Hr, but I might try it in some other fic, but not this one. So this is R/Hr. The only thing left to decide is who gets to be the third wheel. (or fifth wheel, depending on how you see it). And no, I refuse to write slash, don't even go there. So I need you to vote, is it L/H or L/D? It could go either way. And please, if you really do think the romance bit is crap (it probably will be, I'm no good at real romance, my relationships (wow, big words!) always flop. The guys are sweet, but I think I'm commitment-phobic or something. I'm going to have all these girls hating me, I get the few nice guys in existence, and then I turn them down. Damn, I'm an idiot. Okay, ranting time is over for Moon Warrior . Okay, to thank my reviewers, all four (five?) of them: HorseC10 and CatC10, Selena Silvermoon, Jessica, and Corie. If you haven't reviewed: WHAT IN TARNATION ARE YOU WAITING FOR? IT TAKES A LOUSY THIRTY SECONDS, PLUS IF YOU DON'T, YOU MAY END UP READING SOMETHING YOU DON'T LIKE, I LIKE TO WRITE BY WHAT REVIEWERS WANT (on occasion)! SO REVIEW!
CHAPTER EIGHT: THE CHAPTER THAT HAS NO NAME
The trip to the Fire Temple was long, and boring. Harry and Ron refused to speak to Draco (which made some problems, as they were forced to share a tent), Hermione was too nervous to speak to Draco, who refused to speak to anyone except Lili. And Lili refused to speak to anyone. So they were all relieved when after a week of broom traveling they finally reached Egypt. Eager to get some drinks, they charged at the first wizard bar they saw. As they ran in, Ron, in the lead, pulled up short, causing the other four to crash into him. They all ended up in a large pile in the doorway.
"Crimeny, Ron, whatd'ya do that for?" Lili moaned, sitting up and rubbing her bruised forehead.
"And whoever has their elbow in my ass, please move it," Draco added. Lili laughed and blushed, and moved her elbow.
But Ron was ignoring all of them. "Quick! Outside!" He grabbed Harry and Hermione and physically dragged them out of the bar, where he collapsed against the wall.
"Shit!" He swore, provoking a scolding from Hermione, which he ignored. "How could I be so dumb?" Draco opened his mouth, but shut it again when Lili gave him the Evil Eye. "That was Bill in there! He works over here in Egypt! He'll see me, and tell Mum, and she'll kill me!"
"What for?" Draco asked skeptically.
"I dunno, but she will, she's a mother, they always find some reason! I am so screwed..."
"No you're not. You simply haven't mastered the art of blackmail." They all turned to Lili, who was smirking. Harry was beginning to suspect that there was a very large devious side to her personality.
"Say what?" Ron finally asked.
"The art of blackmail. See, you two are brothers, therefore you must have something on him that he doesn't want your mom to find out. Tell him that if he tells your mom that we're here, you'll tell her whatever that is. Oh, and if you can get us a place to stay while you're at it, that would be very useful also."
Throughout Lili's advice, Ron had begun to grin. As she talked, that grin grew bigger, and brighter, until it was almost blinding. He nodded, and then, without a word, waltzed into the bar, and, approaching Bill from behind, sat down at the bar stool next to his brother. He tapped Bill on the shoulder.
"Yes, what can I do for you?" Bill turned away from the pretty Egyptian girl he had been chatting with, and stared, amazed, at his sixteen year old brother, suddenly shown up in the middle of Egypt. "Ron? What are you doing here? And why are you wearing Muggle clothes? You should be in school, not Egypt!"
Ron grinned, enjoying his brother's newfound lack of composure. "Should be, but not. Now, if you'd really like to know why not, we can always head to your place, and I'll explain there. And oh, if you tell Mum or Dad, I'll tell Mum about that tattoo you have on your bum."
Bill paled. "You wouldn't."
"Try me. It says 'Mari-'" Ron was cut short as Bill placed a hand firmly over his mouth.
"Fine, fine. Come on, I'll take you back to my apartment, and we can talk. But oh, wait just a minute." He ran back to the Egyptian girl and appeared to be copying down an address. "Okay, let's go." Bill set off down the street at a pace that only Ron, with his long legs, could match. The other four, who were shorter, had to run to keep up, and Bill noticed.
"Who are these people? I mean, I recognise Harry and Hermione, of course, but who's the other girl? And is that a Malfoy? Why are they with you?" Bill looked at Ron suspiciously, and Ron sighed.
"Bill, I'll tell you when we get to your apartment. I don't feel like explaining the whole thing right out in the street." Bill looked less than satisfied with this, but kept walking. He turned into a tiny alleyway, full of garbage cans and dumpsters. A rickety door at the end of the alleyway opened, and Bill waved to the man exiting.
"Hello, Bill. What's up?"
"Oh, nothing, Ashem. This is my brother, Ron, and these are his friends. They're here to talk to me." Bill's voice told them more than his words themselves did, and it was not pleasant. They entered the doorway, and were amazed at what was on the other side of it. It looked like a five-star hotel, huge, with bellboys and even a pool behind glass doors. Bill nodded politely to the doorman, and entered a door marked 12A, with "Bill Weasley" written underneath in gold ink.
Bill's apartment was modest, although Harry knew Bill made quite a bit of money, working for Gringott's. Bill sat down in a scarlet armchair, and gestured towards the striped couch, which the five teenagers sat down on. "Well?" The question had an undertone which said that they had better tell the truth. Ron sighed, and began to explain. When he got to what had happened at the Earth Temple, Bill's face took on a look of amazement.
"You trusted a Malfoy? You? Ron?" Draco smirked, and Ron shot him a death glare, not half as effective as Lili's.
"It wasn't like I had a choice. That girl doesn't take no for an answer." Lili smirked, and her exppression resembled Draco to the point where it made Bill a bit nervous. Harry, however, saw the light-heartedness underneath the smirk, something that wasn't present in Draco's face. Ron continued explaining, and Bill managed to hold in the rest of his amazement until Ron was finished.
"Okay, so what is it you need?"
Lili spoke up. "A place to stay, a guarantee that you won't tell your mom, and help finding a good deal on several flying carpets."
"Why the carpets?" asked Ron.
She shrugged. "Can't stand the damn brooms anymore." She and Bill negotiated for several minutes (Bill flatly refused to house a Malfoy, even if he was semi-reformed and it was only for one or two nights, it took her fifteen minutes to convince him), and finally he agreed to let them stay.
Bill was an excellent host, allowing the two girls to have his bedroom, the only one in the house, while he slept on the floor of the guest room with Harry, Ron, and Draco. After a short but violent squabble between the two Weasleys and Harry, a very disgusted Harry ended up with the sleeping bag next to Draco. But Draco didn't stay in it for too long.
As soon as the other three were asleep, Draco got up and dragged a blanket out into the living room. He tossed and turned on the sofa for a few minutes, trying to fall asleep. Then Lili came in.
She smiled wryly. "You sound like an elephant with a hernia when you snore, you know that?" She sat down on the end of the sofa, and Draco winced as she crushed his feet.
"What would an elephant with a hernia sound like?"
"Like you when you snore." She flashed her innocent grin at him, the same one she had used on McGonagall, forcing him to drop his ideas of hitting her with a pillow.
"Damn, I hate that face. Always wrecks a revenge plot."
"That's why I love it so much." Lili's train of thought drifted off its tracks, running over a farmhouse and slamming itself against a cliff in a spectacular burst of flame. "Hey Draco?"
"Yes?"
"Why do you act different around me? I can tell, around Harry, and Ron, and Hermione, you keep insulting them, and all that, you keep up the 'I'm your enemy, watch it' face, but you act almost normal around me. Almost."
Draco was very blunt about it. "You were the only person who gave me a real chance. Personally." Lili opened her mouth to ask for more explination, but she didn't have to bother, as he continued. "I mean, Dumbledore wanted us to work for the Light, but he was telling us as a group. I never wanted to be part of a group, a reason why I was reluctant to become a Death Eater, aside from that I don't want to become my father. You asked me, as an individual, and gave me a reason. I accepted."
Lili nodded, contemplating what he had said. Then, "Draco, are we friends?"
He looked surprised that she had asked, then nodded. "Yeah, I think we are. Even though you attacked me earlier this year."
She laughed mutedly. "Well, you thoroughly deserved it. And I seem to remember you turning Hermione into a toad."
"I'm not saying I didn't. And I didn't do it to hurt Granger, you know."
She shook her head violently, causing her waves of brown hair to fly all over the place. Draco suddenly noticed the exact shade of it, and thought to himself that the color suited her very nicely. "I'm not even getting into this with you. I'm going back to sleep." Draco had expected her to go back to the bedroom, but instead, she pulled up two chairs, and lay across them, head on one chair, feet on another.
"I let Hermione have the bed, and I can't sleep on the floor, it's too hard. So I'm sleeping in here tonight." Draco made no objection, he simply gave his best bad-boy grin, rolled over, and fell asleep.
(A/N) I wasn't sure if I should end it here, but I did. And here's the thing: since I did get a review saying romance would be good, I'll try it. I've never done it before (and actually, I haven't wanted to) but I think I'll try my hand at it. Sorry to disappoint HorseC10, but in my mind, Ron and Hermione are as good as married. I don't think I would be able to write H/Hr, but I might try it in some other fic, but not this one. So this is R/Hr. The only thing left to decide is who gets to be the third wheel. (or fifth wheel, depending on how you see it). And no, I refuse to write slash, don't even go there. So I need you to vote, is it L/H or L/D? It could go either way. And please, if you really do think the romance bit is crap (it probably will be, I'm no good at real romance, my relationships (wow, big words!) always flop. The guys are sweet, but I think I'm commitment-phobic or something. I'm going to have all these girls hating me, I get the few nice guys in existence, and then I turn them down. Damn, I'm an idiot. Okay, ranting time is over for Moon Warrior . Okay, to thank my reviewers, all four (five?) of them: HorseC10 and CatC10, Selena Silvermoon, Jessica, and Corie. If you haven't reviewed: WHAT IN TARNATION ARE YOU WAITING FOR? IT TAKES A LOUSY THIRTY SECONDS, PLUS IF YOU DON'T, YOU MAY END UP READING SOMETHING YOU DON'T LIKE, I LIKE TO WRITE BY WHAT REVIEWERS WANT (on occasion)! SO REVIEW!