DiScLaImEr:  IsN't It PuRtY lOoKiNg?  I dOn'T oWn ThEm, SoRrY! 

A/N:  Thanks so much for all the reviews guys!  I read'em all, and get this, I haven't gotten a single flame!  Hooray!  I feel so loved!  Go me, go me, it's mah birthday (not really) woo!

The Escape from Hell

            Hermione took one look, her mouth opened in a silent scream, and froze, stiffer than if she had been petrified.  Draco quickly whipped around, only to see a …. Bunny rabbit?  At least that's what it looked like, except it had some short red horns on top of it's head.  It was just sitting there, munching on some grass, totally harmless looking right?

"What the heck are you screaming your bloody head off for?  It's just a stupid little rabbit, and it can't hurt us, although it's deformed looking with those horns." Said Draco, turning to look at Hermione.

"Oh no, now you've done it.  That is not just a rabbit, it's a Jack-a-lope, and they are some of the most dangerous creatures there are.  It can kill us easily, or worse, take us to hell and lock us up in a cage of fire, for the rest of eternity," whispered Hermione.

"Yeah ri-" Draco started to say, right before the "rabbit" glowed a bright blue, and the next thing they knew, they were falling down a hole that opened up in the ground underneath them.  A few minutes later, they were still falling, but the temperature was increasing very quickly, so that they had to take off their robes, leaving them in muggle shorts and tank tops.  Finally, they came to a stop on a soft bit of muddy ground.  Draco stood up, and being raised as a gentleman, helped Hermione to her feet, without giving it a second thought.  Hermione however, was startled to feel a shock at the touch of his hand.  Draco had felt it too, but other than a quick flickering in his gray eyes, you would never have known.  They looked around.  They were in what could only be described as hell.  All around them was muddy, marshy ground, devoid of grasses or plants of any kind, and many hot springs of lava that kept bubbling, filling the air with a disgusting sulfurous scent of rotten eggs.  While standing there, taking in their surroundings, they heard a voice behind them.

"Welcome to hell.  How was your trip, I hope you didn't land too hard, because we really need to work on that.  Can I offer you anything to eat or drink, or wait, no I'm sorry, I can't it's only for dead souls anyhow, so you wouldn't be able to drink it unless you plan on never leaving.  Anyways, my name is Gregorius, I'm Lucifer's personal servant, and I'm here to escort you to him, so if you'll just follow me, it's not very far, and he is very curious to meet you." Said the man who called himself Gregorius.

"Er… Okay," said Draco, as he and Hermione started to follow him.  They honestly hadn't heard too much of what he said, since he spoke very fast, and had an unusual accent.

            The group walked toward some rocky structures, with Hermione and Draco listening to Gregorius babble on about something or another.  They were too nervous about meeting Lucifer, the Devil of Hell.  Hermione was extremely nervous, but of course she wouldn't show it.  Draco was probably the same, if not more so, but he had been beaten for letting emotions show, so he kept them hidden.  They came to a halt in front of a door in the side of the cliff.  Gregorius said something, but in a language that neither Draco nor Hermione could understand.

"Wow, the language of the angels," said Hermione in awe.

"What are you talking about?" asked Draco, surprisingly, without a sneer on his face.

"Whatever he just said, it was in the language of the angels.  Lucifer, also known as the Devil and ruler of hell, is a fallen angel."

"That is correct girl.  Now, you two, come closer so that I may scrutinize you further," came a dark voice. 

            They had entered the cave, and had been led to the throne room of Lucifer, without even realizing it.  As soon as they heard his voice, Draco automatically bent at the waist in a bow, and when Hermione saw this, she too, dropped into a deep curtsy.  After-all, he was the King of hell, so to speak.

"No need for that, here you are equals, at least in Voldemort's opinion, since you are the chosen ones to create an heir for him.  So rise, and come over here.  I have some things I would like to discuss with you." Came Lucifer's dark and cold voice again.

            The two of them straightened up, looking at each other, and made their way over to the throne. 

"Now, you can not stay for more than a few minutes more, since you are both living mortals, so let me be quick.  You are now the parents-to-be of Voldemort's heir.  This is assuming of course, that he manages to take the child.  I know you have no desire to unite together that way, but Voldemort could force a union.  You two hold a great deal of power in your hands.  Voldemort can not kill you, and believe it or not, he fears you in a sense, since you control his destiny, so to speak.  The other death eaters also fear you.  They know who you are, and you can basically control them.  To everyone who is united with Voldemort, you are considered, let's see, how to put it, another leader of the dark side, so to speak.  Now, your time is up, guard the information I have shared with you.  Tell no one, except for your Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore.  And remember, Voldemort has ways of making you comply, be on your guard."

"But why are you helping us by telling us this?" asked Hermione before she could control herself.

"Because, no one should have to suffer Voldemort's evil whims, not even those pathetic muggles." Lucifer replied.

            And with a slight nod from the fallen angel hidden in the shadows, they were suddenly swept away again, and within a few moments, were stumbling onto the ground, right outside Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  It was dusk, and very cold.

"How long were we gone?  I mean, down there, it only seemed like a few minutes, but I know time in the underworld passes differently from here," spoke Hermione as she quickly got to her feet with Draco's help.

"I don't know the exact time conversion, so my guess is that we were gone for a week, maybe two or so.  But c'mon, we better get in," said Draco as it started to rain, and hard.

            Hermione had already had a slight cold before when they had gone to their first death-eater meeting, and the fumes in hell hadn't helped, so now she was wheezing, coughing, and sneezing, and turning very pale with the cold rain.  Draco noticed this, and took off his waterproof cloak, giving it to her, which she gladly accepted.  She turned to say thanks, but before she could, she suddenly lurched forward in a dead faint.  Draco barely had time to scoop her up in his arms.  She was limp against him. 

"Great, I hope you realize what this could do to my reputation," he said as he quickly started to the main doors.  He started to reach for his wand, but before he could, the doors opened.

"How the heck?" he started to say, when he realized Hermione had whispered "Alohomora," and she hadn't used her wand. 

"Weird, something must have happened when we went to hell," he said aloud, "Can you walk Granger, or do I need to carry you still?"

"I think I can walk," she said as she attempted to stand.  She succeeded for a split second, before she started to collapse and had to be scooped up by Draco again.

"Thanks.  I guess I'm sicker than I thought." She said, as she slipped into unconsciousness again.

"Shit!  I gotta get her to the infirmary.  Lets see, it's seven o'clock, everyone will be in the dinner hall.  Damn, everyone's gonna see me.  Oh well, at least I'll get house points." He said, mainly for his benefit.

            As he neared the great hall, a first year saw him, and ran inside screaming, "They're back, and she's sick!"  As Draco entered, everyone was just staring in shock.  A Slytherin helping a Gryffindor?  It was un-heard of.  Dumbledore ran over with Madame Pomphrey, Snape, and McGonnagall. 

"Mister Malfoy, what happened?  Oh never mind, you can explain later, let's just get Miss Granger to the infirmary right away.  If you'll continue.." started Dumbledore, motioning to the stairs just outside the great hall entrance, leading to the infirmary. 

"Yeah, I'll carry her," said Draco as he walked quickly to the infirmary, where he placed Hermione on a bed.

"Get better Granger," he said, his voice barely noticeable, however, Dumbledore noticed, and smiled.

"Thank you Mister Malfoy, 50 points to Slytherin, and if you'll come with me to my office, I believe we have much to discuss."

            Draco just nodded, and numbly followed Professor Dumbledore up to his office, for what seemed the millionth time that year so far.

A/N:  So, what do ya think?  I added some sappiness in there, and it's getting good, or at least I think so.  I'm sorry I haven't posted recently, but my Nana (grandmother) is in the hospital, so I've been worried about her, and I also got 4 projects due this week, can you believe that?  Anyways, thanx for reading!