A/N: You'll probably be glad to know that this is a long, long chapter

A/N: You'll probably be glad to know that this is a long, long chapter. I leave you with quite a cliffie, but I can assure you that I'll have more out soon. This is not your regular Draco/Hermione romance and (if you haven't already deduced this) is not pure fluff. I'm not sure I'm quite happy with this chapter but I think it will work….so here it is and remember that I do not own any of these characters, they belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, however, I do own my plot. Peace.

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DEFEATED WE RISE

Chapter Six: We Will Move Slowly (How Can You Lie?)

            I hugged my knees to my chest, contemplating. Christmas holiday upon us, Draco wanted to take my amulet home with him over the holidays. It was amazing, how, after almost four months of knowing each other, and almost three months of dating, Harry was the only one who knew we met at all.

            Every book on the Hogwarts library had been earmarked and read thoroughly, yet still there was no hint that my amulet even existed. I supposed I would send it with him. My dream seemed ridiculous by now and it was getting blurry. I sighed and flopped back onto my bed. My trunk was packed, everyone would be on the Hogwarts' Express in less than half an hour, and still I didn't know what to do.

            Like I thought everyday, maybe I should go to Dumbledore about it. Then, I would rationalize, I would have to tell him my whole dream, I would have to tell him about Draco, and that would be his death warrant. So I just kept quiet.

 

            It was too much of a risk to basically put the amulet in Lucius Malfoy's hands. Ridiculous that I would consider. I couldn't let him take it. I would just ask Draco to try his best with the books at home.

***

            I dreaded going back to Malfoy Manor. I had been informed by Pansy that she would be coming to visit me on New Years'. The whore still had no idea I was seeing Hermione…which made things rather difficult, and uncomfortable. Apparently, there was to be a Death Eater rally. I didn't really feel like participating…for some reason, all the zest I had always felt for killing, for blood on my pale hands, had disappeared. It was gone, and left me revolted, with them, and with myself.

            I had offered to take the amulet home over holiday and try to figure it out. Hermione flipped on me, and I had yet to figure out why. I shoved the last of my things in my trunk and pulled off the amulet I wore around my own neck. It radiated a protective shield and I was going to give it to Hermione, since she would be prone to attacks and was going to the Weasley's as well. God knows what could happen in that shack.

            It was then that I heard a faint knock on my door. I opened it, and felt a whoosh of air slip past me. I closed my door, and she took Harry's cloak off.

            I knew this was the last time I would see her for over two weeks and the very idea ripped at my heart. She flung herself into my arms, kissing me warmly. Then she pulled apart from me and searched my eyes.

            "Draco…" she paused, looking at the ground. "I can't send the amulet with you, because I'm just too afraid…that, well, that they'll get it."

            I hadn't expected that. Why on earth would they even want it? It wasn't like it was anything glorious. It didn't even really shine.

            "Why?—"

            She cut me off by covering my lips in her own, smothering any questions I might have had. She kissed me for a long time, and when she pulled away, she was crying.

            "I'm scared, Draco…please be careful over the holidays, alright? If you could still look in the books for me that would be lovely, I just can't risk it with the amulet, not right now, at least…I've never really told you this before…but you know I love you, right?"

            People didn't generally tell me they loved me. In fact, my parents never had. I feel ashamed at my own weakness, but hearing the mudblood say that brought tears to my eyes.

            I pulled her into a parting kiss, and, as I slipped my amulet on top of her own, I whispered, "And I you. Until we meet again, remember me by this…" You would have thought we were going away for eternity, the way we acted. But I know we were both scared. I don't think we knew what of, but Fear is a frantic thing, and we were fearful. She smiled up at me and squeezed my hand three times before throwing the invisibility cloak over her shoulders and disappearing.

***

            "'Mione, need a hand with any of that?"

            "I think I've got it, thanks Ron. Where should I put my trunks?"

            "I think you're staying with Ginny. I mean, obviously, you know, since you're a girl and all…I mean…" He was blustering a bit. Ginny came and took over.

            "Ron! Fred and George need help with de-gnoming the garden! How 'bout I take care of Hermione, alright?"

            "I hate gnomes!" he stormed off, only to be caught up in one more hug from his mother, who was also busy hugging Harry repeatedly.

            Ginny chuckled. I knew she still liked Harry, but she had grown much more composed over the past few months, and didn't blush as brightly or hide as often anymore. "Honestly, do you think they'll ever escape her?" She looked sideways at me, laughing.

            I smiled back. "At this rate, it looks unlikely! What's been happening with you, Gin? I haven't had a chance to talk to you much lately…"

            "Me? Oh, same old, same old…actually…well, lets just wait 'till we get into my room…I sound proofed my walls, isn't that cool?!" She tugged me up the crooked stairs at a violent rate, slammed her door open, opened her window, shoved my stuff into a corner and slammed the door shut again. Then she looked sideways at me once again, showing off her muggle CD player and putting in Marilyn Manson.

            "Gin! Does your mother actually let you listen to that?"

            "What? Oh, like she knows! Dad got this at a garage sale for my birthday last year…and I told him Marilyn Manson was this girl who sang really lovely jazz…and so I got it, and since my walls are soundproof no one hears it. Plus, none of the boys will tell because they love it too." She shot me a devilish grin. "Ooh, Herm, I've got sooo much to tell you! You wouldn't believe!"

            "What happened?"

            "Well…" Ginny began to blush slightly, and fiddle with her thumbs "I was in the Astronomy tower a few weeks ago, you know, because we have that God-awful planetary alignment project, and, just to spite me, Ron wouldn't let me borrow his recordings, so I had to go out and do everything on my own…and it was late, I was up there with my blanket and hot chocolate mapping Jupiter, and guess who happened to come up right then?" She was bouncing up and down on her bed with anticipation now, "Well? Guess! Guess!"

            She always had so much energy, but it was good, because it got my mind off of more depressing things. I instinctively reached for my amulets, feeling the comforting heat Draco's let off, and the serene knowledge of my own. "Um…I dunno…Harry?"

            "Yes! And guess what?"

            "What?"

            "Well…we got to talking, really for the first time, because I didn't have a chance to run away like I usually do, and it was dark so he couldn't tell that I had turned crimson, thank God, and I think he actually sees me as a person now, rather than just Ron's little sister, because…oh, Hermione, you've got to promise that you won't tell anyone any of this, please?"

            I was getting a slightly nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach, but I nodded my head twice.

            "He kissed me! Oh, you've no idea how long I've waited to be kissed by him, Herm! It was lovely, too, the way all his attention was on me, and…" She drifted off into a state of lovely oblivion.

            "Ginny…Harry wasn't by any chance, the one who told you to keep quiet about the whole…incident, now, was he?"

            "Well, yes, but that's natural, because we wouldn't want Parvati to know, would we?"

            "Ginny!" I was aghast.

            "It only happened the once…" suddenly Ginny's face fell "And I thought he was going to break up with her for me, that being my first kiss and everything and the way he looked at me…well, I could barely make out his eyes, but the way I'm certain they were looking at me…but he didn't, and now I'm so confused!"

            "Oh, Ginny…do you want me to talk to him about it?"

            "I-I don't know…yes, I suppose. I'm so confused and if-if he's using me, which I never could believe Harry would do, because he's so good and so sweet and I love him, but if he is, it's got to stop and I've got to stop…would you?"

            "Of course I will. I'll get it all straightened out. It just doesn't sound like the type of thing he would do…" I sighed and drew the younger girl into a hug. It was nice to have another girl to talk to, and another person's problems to worry about. It took my mind off of my own, off of things that were out of my control.

            "Ginny! Hermione! Suppertime!" Molly Weasley's voice shrilled up the staircase towards us.

            Ginny jumped up and I followed suit. She turned to me, looking more than a little worried. "Herm, the thing is, I haven't really gotten things straightened out with Harry yet and I'm…well, I'm nervous about dinner!"

            "Don't worry, Gin. You've got six older brothers home for Christmas who are all trying to talk to him, talk to you, talk to each other. Dinner will be fine and if anything uncomfortable should happen I'll intervene, alright?"

            "Ok, thanks. You can sit next to me, if you like. Charlie normally sits next to me, but I think the arrangement will be a bit different since our family has grown two larger!" She squeezed my hand and tugged me out of her room and down the stairs.

            Mrs. Weasley had outdone herself with dinner. We had turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, brownies, tea, sautéed veggies, home-made bread and berry cobbler. It was a general rush of freckled hands and shouting and laughing and poking and jabbing, all ending with a large, contented sigh from Mr. Weasley. Fred and George had already set off several dung-bomb variations of their own so they had to go brew up the powder to make the smell go away, and Percy had taken Charlie, Bill, and Mr. Weasley aside to discuss something he stated was 'highly classified information' within the Ministry, but Ginny had her suspicions otherwise. Mrs. Weasley called both her and Ron into the kitchen to help clean up, and while Harry and I offered to help we were turned hastily away. Ginny shot me a last fervent glance and disappeared among the suds of their large sink.

            I steered Harry into their sitting room, which consisted of chairs and couches and various muggle 'inventions' strewn about haphazardly. He looked at me questioningly, and I looked pointedly back at him.

            I decided it best to cut the chase and make my point. "What are you doing with Ginny?"

            He looked at me, ran a hand through his wavy black hair, and muttered, "Christ!".

            "Harry…"

            "I…I hadn't meant to, honest. It just…happened, and I still want to kiss her because she wasn't bad…but she's Ron's little sis, and I've got a girlfriend…"

            "And you're acting completely irresponsibly!"

            "Hermione, it's going to be hard to appeal my case to you because you don't know what passion feels like. I mean, you've just never had a real relationship. Krum doesn't count because he lives thousands of miles away and that really didn't last very long as it was. But, up in the tower, it felt magical that night. You know? Like, there was something more important going on here than…Christ, than other times I suppose. I don't really know what I'm talking about but I do care for Parvati and don't want to hurt her and I really do like her. I also care for Ginny and I like her too…"

            "But do you care whether or not you hurt her?"

            "Well, naturally but she's not my girlfriend—"

            "Harry, do you realize she had never kissed anyone before? It wasn't just some quick thing for her. You do all these great things, you know. She sees you for them and respects you for them and if you can't live up to her expectations then leave her alone and make everyone's life a little bit easier. Also, please don't underestimate anyone's ability to perceive passion. It's not fair to me, and it's not helping you to appeal your case by stating I've never experienced—"

            "Well, you haven't, have you?"

            "Sorry I ever got into it…umm, just don't hurt her, k?"

            Harry nodded solemnly and bowed his head. I had faith in him yet. Then his head popped up again. "Hermione, you wouldn't bring up passion unless…Listen, that night I talked to Malfoy he said you two weren't…involved. Was that a lie?"

            I weighed the question. When he asked him, no, I suppose it wasn't. I didn't want all hell to break loose at this particular moment. "No…"

            Harry was sharper than many gave him credit. "And now, Hermione?"

            "And now?" my throat went dry and my voice sounded caustic.

            He gave me a pointed look.

            "Can I get back to you on that later?"

            "No."

            I sighed, and was about to answer when Ron came in. As Ron was talking Harry looked at me again and reluctantly I nodded my head 'yes', then told them both good night and left Harry with a lot to think about.

***

            I was greeted with a sharp nod from my father, a small smile from my mother and almost ten chattering house-elves. They attacked me, taking my suitcases and coat and shoes and shoving cookies, tea, chocolate, warm socks, blankets, and books at me. It was almost comforting, but the fact that my father was tapping his foot impatiently told me to put it all down and follow him into his study.

            "Draco." He looked down his characteristically straight nose at me, piercing me with the only eyes that had ever matched mine in venom, and been human, naturally. I did not mean that my eyes held more venom than the Dark Lord, for that would be an overestimate of my abilities, and a degradation of Master.

            "Yes, father?"

            "You're a changed boy. What happened throughout your semester?"

            He wasn't asking me in fatherly affection. He wanted to know how well I had behaved. I had mulled this over the entire time on the Express, and answers hadn't come to me. Hermione would not suffice as being 'good'.

            I held my head a little higher, and replied, "I noted that the mudblood's parents were killed. It was as I expected, and had little effect upon Potter."

            "And why is that?"

            "Because Granger is not Potter, father. It hurt her, I'm sure, but Potter got on with life just as the rest of us did."

            "Did you?"

            "What do you mean?"

            "Did you get on with life after their deaths?"

            "Well, naturally. It's not like it affected me in the least."

            "Boy, you're different and you know I know it. For your own good I hope you haven't been mucking too deep in trouble. It is no longer my business to assign your punishments. You should know better than to mess with the Dark Lord, for nothing goes past his eye unseen. You'll learn yet." With that he dismissed me from his study and suddenly tea and cookies didn't feel very appealing to my stomach. I wondered how much they knew. I instinctively clutched for my amulet and remembered it was around her neck. I would be alright. I would be alright…

***

            It was Christmas morning and I had been at the Burrow for three days now. I woke to the sound of fists pounding on Ginny's door, and rushed to open it, only to have Harry, Ron, Fred, George, Bill, and Charlie to bombard upon us. Percy yelled from down the hall for some quiet.

            I was shocked to see presents at the foot of my bed, because who was there to give me a present? One shocked me in particular. It was wrapped in pale green and tied in gold ribbon, representing both Slytherin and Gryffindor and clearly from Draco.

***

            I was frantically going through our library. I had until tonight to figure out what sort of amulet it was, otherwise my owl wouldn't get to Hermione by Christmas morning, and I had a feeling that the Weasley's were early risers, probably over-zealous about the prospect of a present. At noon, my mother came in, worried.

            "Heavy workload, dear?"

            "What? Oh, yeah, McGonnagal gets worse every year…" she made low growls in her throat and as she left shouted for a house elf to bring me something to eat.

            At suppertime my father gave me a lecture about being a Malfoy and consequently the need to sustain the highest quality of manners and that if I didn't come to dinner I would have no dinner and no breakfast tomorrow either. I stayed in the library. Around eleven, I finally alighted upon what I wanted.

            'The Amulet of Gaia, goddess of the Earth, draws on power from the four elements: earth, air, fire, and water. Since governed by Mother Earth, the amulet represents earthly life and the physical body. When possessed by a truly just and honest individual, this amulet has the power to protect one from their worst adversaries, giving one enough earthly strength and power so that while you may feel pain, even the Unforgiveables cannot kill you. Once cast, forever remains. This does not lead to immortality; it simply renders your foes unable to kill you, although they can still torture you, naturally." I paused and looked at the cover of the book. Ah, The Abuse of Lighter Arts. That explained it. "However, this amulet, as any other, can be manipulated. While it is highly restricted, one can take the amulet from it's possessor—only if it has not yet been cast—and use a spell in the back of this book to put it's power upon oneself. The Amulet of Gaia can also be used in correspondence with several more primitive potions used to lengthen life which, when combined, will lead to immortality. Should a Dark wizard obtain this, there would be very little left in his path to world domination."  I let out a long, low whistle.

            It was then that I noticed that there was someone else in the room with me, and that they, too, were in awe.

            I turned around and saw my father looking down upon me, apparently measuring me with his eyes.

            "Yes, father?"

            "Voldemort talked to me a half hour ago and informed me that my son" he paused and drew in a sharp breath, outraged "has spent his entire semester cavorting with a mudblood! Not just any mudblood, mind you, but one in particular, who goes by the name of Hermione Granger. Do you realize what sort of punishment this will result in?"

            I swallowed and looked into his steely eyes. Of course I knew. "Death, father."

            "And you are willing to die for a mudblood? What sort of son have I raised?" He clearly wanted to kill me on the spot.

            "Father, I am a Death Eater and I did not intend…to become involved…with Hermione." He choked when I said her name "I hate mudbloods, I hate Potter, I hate Weasleys, I hate the remaining Granger. Only, love seems terribly close and I didn't expect it…"

            "Have I not always told you to 'know thy enemy'?"

            "Yes, father, and know her I do…"

            Suddenly his eyes began to light up. "The Dark Lord said there was the possibility of your redemption…however, it is at a price, Draco. When you became a Death Eater did you not swear upon your soul that Voldemort was the only worthwhile thing within this world?"

            "Yes, but—"

            "Did you not swear to help eradicate this world of mudbloods?"

            "Yes, but fa—"

            "Do you not bear the Mark upon your left forearm?"

            "I do, but—"

            "Then this is what you must do."

            "I love her!"

            "Love DOES NOT EXIST!" He pounded the mahogany desk fiercely.

            I shook my head at him in wonder. "How can you tell such lies?"

            "I tell you the truth! You've become self-centered and spoiled! This is not your life, it is the continuation of the Malfoy name, it is the exaltation of the Dark Lord, there are more important things at stake than some sixteen-year-old boy's ideas on love!"

            I snarled but knew to keep quiet. His wand was pointed at my temple and all he had to do was say it.

            "The Amulet of Gaia is in possession of Hermione Granger, is it not?" He jabbed my temple harder with his wand.

            "Yes." I gritted out.

            "The Dark Lord needs that amulet, Draco. He is willing to spare your life and overlook your mistakes if you bring it to him within the next month."

            "How can you ask me to hurt her?"

            My father threw his head back and laughed. "Do you honestly think I'm asking you? Draco, you act as if you're new to the Malfoy ways. If you don't do it, I'll see that you get the Kiss instead. People with the Kiss certainly don't feel love, you idiot!"

            "I will not do it!" I knew they needed that amulet, and the easiest thing was to get it through me. They wouldn't kill me yet.

            "Is that so?"

            "Yes!"

            "Then I'll make you!" he paused, drew in a breath, and, with wand still pointed at my temple, shouted, "Imperio!"

            Suddenly my mind felt milked over. Everything was light, happy and blissful.

            "Draco, get a piece of parchment and a quill." I grinned and did so. It made me happy to get a quill…

            I put it in front of him. He smiled back at me. It looked warm from behind my milky veil.

            "Write to Hermione Granger. Tell her about the amulet. Swear your love. We will move slowly…"

           

There you go! Chapter Six…please review and I'll continue writing for you! One of the main reasons I continue to write (actually, the main reason I post on ff.net) is because I naturally love reviews….so, if you have two spare seconds could you REVIEW?

~peace~