**Coming Together**
Chapter Seven: Denial...kind of
A/N: Hey guys! This Chapter is dedicated to my buddy Jessie M. Because she was a really big help with this story and she gave me like a HUGE self esteem boost about it too! Thanks Jessie you ROCK! And to all the people who reviewed thanks to you too! Chapter eight should be coming out soon... hopefully. SO PLEASE REVIEW! REVIEW, REVIEW!!!! If you wanna make me happy I have one suggestion...REVIEW THIS STORY!!!!!!! BY THE WAY READ THE POEM AT THE END OF THE STORY MY FRIEND WROTE IT!!
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Draco sat, eating his dinner silently at the long wooden table in the dining hall of the castle. His father was at the opposite end of the table, it was just the two of them...besides the house elf waiting by the door to serve their every need.
"This came today." His father said suddenly, breaking the silence. Draco looked up and his father tossed a small envelope down the table, which slid part of the way to him. He picked up the envelope and opened it. Draco shook his head slowly, he should've known. It was from Harry.
Malfoy-
Where are you? Ron and I can't just sit around and wait while you supposedly 'save' Hermione. We want to help...that is if you really are trying to save Hermione. But to help we need to know where you are! Write back and tell us.
Draco let out a short sigh and looked up at his father.
"Well, Draco?" his father asked. He gave his father a blank look.
"Well what?"
"What could be a better time to write that letter to Potter asking for help?" Draco's eyes darted back and fourth, staring at his father and trying to come up with a way to postpone writing the letter.
"Are you sure? I mean-"
"Do it after dinner." Lucius interrupted him. "That is a demand. I want to send that letter tonight. Is that clear?" he told his son sternly.
"Yes, father, it is." Draco said, deflated, but trying to hide it.
"Very well then. Get up to your room and start writing." Draco nodded slowly and got up from the table. He watched for a moment as the house elf who had been waiting near by rushed up and whisked his plate away. With another sharp glance from his father he walked up to his room.
"Bugger." Draco mumbled as he neared the door to his room. He walked into his room and sat down a his small mahogany desk, pulled out a piece of paper and a quill, and started to right the letter.
Hermione sat shivering in the corner of her cell. Was it nighttime? Was it morning? She couldn't tell. All she knew was that her stomach was beginning to growl with hunger and she was freezing cold. She hoped Draco would come down soon with some food or something...anything. Hermione wiped her hand across her forehead. Her cinnamon brown eyes gazed up at the ceiling as her mind drifted elsewhere. Harry and Ron. Her two best friends, partners in crime, god how she missed them. She prayed they were alright and they would steer clear of anything that had to do with Voldemort until the time was right...if ever
Hermione leaned back against the cold stone wall, maybe tonight she could sleep. She hadn's slept in three days and it had become just like a hunger that her entire body craved and ached for. But when she closed her eyes, so many thoughts flooded her mind, and she realized once again sleep was impossible.
Draco was just finishing the letter when a knock at his door startled him. He turned around and standing at the door was a young girl, maybe around his age, with long flowing blonde hair, and bright blue eyes, was standing in the door frame, wearing gray robes and a serious expression. Draco meant to ask 'What do you want?' but instead he asked, "Who are you?" A small smile played on the girls features.
"You may call me Cordelia. I'm a maid here." The girl said, the serious expression returning to her face. Draco realized he had been staring at her and shook his head slightly.
"Well, what are you doing here?" he asked her.
"Master Malfoy wishes to see you, in his office. Bring the letter with you." she replied, her voice oddly formal. Cordelia turned and walked out of the room. Draco stared after her for a moments time and then grabbed the letter and rushed up behind her when he realized she was waiting for him. She led him to his father's office, even though he already knew where it was, and knocked on the door with her small pale hand.
"Come in." He heard his father's voice from the office. Cordelia opened the door slowly.
"Master Malfoy, I brought your son as you asked." she stated clearly.
"Ah, yes, thank you Cordelia. You may go." Cordelia nodded at the order and left the room, shutting the door behind her. Lucius looked at his son expectantly. "Well, have you finished the letter?"
"Yes, father, I have."
"Let's see it then." Lucius reached out for the letter and Draco handed it to him. Lucius walked around his desk and sat down in the large, plush, leather chair behind it. His ice cold gray-blue eyes scanned over the letter and then he looked up at Draco once again. "Very good, Draco. It's quite believable. I shall send this off tonight." His father gave him a rare, but short smile and waved his hand for Draco to leave. Draco did so and went down to the kitchens to get Hermione food.
When Draco had left the kitchens he shrunk the food so it fit in the palm of his hand. The night watch around the castle was a lot tighter and he was sure if he carried around a platter of food to the dungeons he would get caught this time. As he walked down towards the cells he passed more guards than usual and was only pleased when he found the guard who watched over the dungeon cells, still sleeping, and snoring quite loudly at that. He reached Hermione's cell and muttered 'Alohamora' and walked in. He muttered a few choice words and the food was brought back to its original size. Hermione was sitting in the corner, her eyes closed and head back, leaning against the stone wall. He knelt down next to her.
"Hermione?" he whispered to her quietly. Her eyes opened and she brought them level with his. "I have food for you." he held out the platter of pumpkin juice, and a vegetable stew, which was covered and when the top was taken off the bowl it was still steaming slightly.
"Took you long enough." Hermione said, accepting the food and beginning to eat it.
"Was that a thank you?" he asked smirking a bit. Hermione nodded slightly, still eating extremely fast. "Woah, slow down there tiger. What're you a vacuum?" Hermione looked up and gave him one of her death glares, at which Draco rolled his eyes. She finished after a few minutes of fast eating, and set aside the platter, which Draco shrunk once again, and looked up at him.
"What time is it?" she asked curiously. That wasn't the question he had been expecting, his brows knitted together slightly and he answered.
"Uh, last time I checked it was 8:30...but it's probably around nine-ish now." Draco told her. "Why?"
"Well there's no windows down here so I didn't know if it was nighttime or if it was morning." Draco nodded once, acknowledging the information. Then remembered something.
"Harry and Ron are coming." he said plainly.
"What? Are they going to help us?" Hermione asked eagerly.
"Hermione, you don't understand..." He said not really wanting to explain the entire situation.
"Then make me understand."
"I wrote them and told them to come." Draco explained to her.
"What makes that bad?" Hermione asked.
"My father planned it." Hermione looked at him, still lost. "I was supposed to tell Harry and Ron that you and I were in trouble and needed their help. It's a plot. To kill Harry." Hermione flinched. "Voldemort knows that Harry is coming and he hopes to finish him off once and for all."
"Oh great. Just fabulous." she said. Hermione was going to make another smart comment when she realized something. "Wait--so, you're father thinks you're on the dark side too?"
"Uh, well, yeah. Pretty much."
"Good job, Malfoy. Bloody well done." Hermione said sarcastically. "You really dug us all in deep this time, Malfoy."
"What would you prefer if I had stayed with Potter and Weasley and let you rot in this cell?" Draco said coolly.
"Harry and Ron would've come for me." said Hermione sounding confident.
"Don't be so sure of yourself, Granger." Draco said icily.
"I know they would've come for me." she said. "That's more than I can say for you."
"Ouch." said Draco sarcastically, putting his hands to his heart. "Blow to my self esteem, Granger. You really know how to stomp on a guys heart." Hermione shot daggers at Draco. "Ooh if looks could kill, Granger, I have the strong feeling I would be dead."
"Oh shut up, Malfoy. Shut up and get out." she demanded.
"What? Don't want me around any more?" he asked, mockingly.
"Exactly. Now get out of this god forsaken cell, and leave me to my own depressed thoughts. They're a lot better than listening to you." she hissed angrily. Draco got up and looked down at her, with his stone cold gray eyes.
"What if I decide not to come back?" he began walking toward the cell door, not expecting an answer, and was almost out the door when he heard Hermione reply.
"Oh I think you'll come back." Draco turned around to ask her exactly what she meant by that, but when he did, she looked as if she were already sleeping. Which left Draco to figure out the hidden undertones of the remark...if there were any.
"They're coming. They should be here in a few days." Lucius said to the same face which had been in the fire yesterday.
"Good, good." said the voice sounding pleased. "I will to tell Lord Voldemort about this." the voice paused. "I'm sure he will be quite satisfied. He may have an exceptional bonus for you. Master has informed me that you have been doing superior work lately." a small, odd smile tugged at the corners of Lucius' lips.
"Has he now?"
"Yes, Lucius, he has. I wouldn't be at all suprised if he did have that bonus for you." The face in the flames' manor suddenly changed to a very stern, harsh looking expression and looked Lucius straight in the eyes. "But if you fail...well...You better pray to god you don't. I do not think Lord Voldemort will let that one slide." Lucius' smug smile faded, but he didn't look frightened.
"Oh, tell Master not to worry. I will not fail." Lucius said.
"Very well. I must be going." And with a small pop the face disappeared, leaving Lucius to sit at his desk and wonder what his bonus would be.
~*I'm praying this is an illusion~*
~*Why does there have to be so much confusion?~*
~*Trusting this stranger feels so right and so wrong all at once~*
~*It's alluring,~*
~*To want to rip you open and see what you're about~*
~*I want to somehow take away your pain by dissecting your emotions,~*
~*Though I try to deny that I incredibly want this~*
~*I keep breathing for the touch of your lips~*
~*My head says no, but my heart screams for you~*
~*An ongoing battle between consciences,~*
~*Leaving me drained~*
~*It would be easier to choose, if I didn't have to live through you~*
~*You're my last hope. Not by will.~*
~*All the while I grind down my mind making excuses for why you're saving me~*
~*I don't know if I can handle the truth~*
~*So while I lie here beaten and crippled~*
~*You are my last freedom~*
~*And I pray for the touch of your hand~*
~*Wondering and waiting for the 'correct' way to feel about you~*
~by, my friend, Jessie Manning~
A/N: Who is the mysterious man in the fire?? Hmm...*strokes her fake non-existent beard* Is Hermione going to ever admit that kissing Draco was not a mistake? bum bum bum..lol. Sooo did you like that chapter? I hope you did! For once I thought this chapter was pretty good. Did you like the poem at the end? The person who I dedicated this chapter to (Jessie M.) wrote it especially for this story because she liked it. Thanks again for your support Jessie! And also to all of you cool people who reviewed! Now it's your turn to express your feelings about this chapter and tell me how you feel. Come on make my day! lol REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW and once agian REVIEW!! Come on you guys my dream is to have at least 100 reviews on this entire story and I REALLY wanna get that so please REVIEW! Did I make that clear? If I didn't I'll say it again: REVIEW THIS STORY 'CAUSE WHEN YOU DON'T IT MAKES ME SAD! lol. I luv ya'll! I'm gonna go now cuz it's 1:19 am and I'm TIRED! So bye bye now!
