Never Say Never
Chapter 24 – Delusion
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that J.K Rowling does, and the situations created in this story are purely fictional, using the characters thought up by J.K =)
Draco's POV
We were strolling back to the manor, the Dark Lord and I, but I was on my guard…I had a feeling He had something up His sleeve that He wasn't telling us about, especially since He was inquiring into personal details about me and Hermione's relationship. I assume that He didn't know that I knew that she was The One and that He was going to 'dispose' of her after she gave birth to…our child…
All of a sudden I heard someone crying out for help in my mind, and I turned around sharply. Where had Hermione gone?! Voldemort was giving me a look of confusion, and I realized that the cry was from Hermione, because He couldn't hear it.
"Hermione's in trouble." I explained quickly, racing back up the hill from where we had just come from in hope of finding her. How could we have left her behind?!
Soon I did find her, lying in a crumpled heap near the black summerhouse and evidently unconscious. The Dark Lord followed closely behind me and His eyes narrowed to slits again as He took in the scene before Him. I thought I heard Him mutter an obscenity under His breath, but the flashing look He gave me made me decide not to comment.
"Wake up!" I said, shaking her shoulder in hope of her leaving unconsciousness. She did not respond, and anxiety took over, I made to pick her up from the ground and take her back to the mansion, but Voldemort was a step ahead of me, as usual and He had performed a Transporting Spell to move her back to the manor, and in a moment she was gone.
"Don't worry, Draco. I will take care of this." He stated, and then Disapparated.
Damn! Why can't I Disapparate yet?! I thought frustratedly to myself. I didn't want Hermione in the hands of Voldemort, though I knew He wouldn't be harming her in any way at the moment, but what if He put some sort of spell on her…some spell that made her think differently?
I hurried back to the manor, and began to search for Snape. I knew that he was the only one who could help us. On the way, I passed Wormtail, and I looked menacingly at him and demanded to know where the hell Hermione was now. He gave a petrified squeak before answering,
"Master has taken her back to her room. Forgive me for saying this but…she didn't look as though she was very well."
"Thank you for your time, Wormtail." I said patronizingly, before continuing my search for Snape. I didn't dare ask anyone whether they had seen him, in fear that word would travel back to Voldemort…I didn't know just how safe he was, considering he was really working for Dumbledore…surely the Dark Lord knew that?
I passed Hermione's room and I hesitated for just a moment, the urge to eavesdrop on what was going on was strong…but on reflection I decided I would come back later after I found Snape, hopefully with a plan on how we were going to get out of this place.
In a dark dungeon in the cellars of the manor, after a few hours of searching I found him. He was working on some sort of potion, and he was extremely distracted, so he didn't notice me walking into his laboratory.
"Professor. I need to talk to you about something." I said softly. He jerked out of his concentration on his work and looked at me in an alarmed fashion, "Is there something wrong?"
"No…no…its just that…how did you find me here?!" Snape asked worriedly. With a wave of his wand, all his equipment had vanished, "Was anyone else following you?"
"I was alone. I had been looking for you all over the estate, and I just happened to stumble across you here…its such a typical place of you, Professor." I replied, smirking.
"This is not a matter of jest, Draco. If anyone else discovers me here, we are doomed, no one is supposed to know of this place. And if it is as easily accessed by others as it was by you, then I have every reason to be afraid." He muttered angrily.
"I'm sorry." I replied shortly, "What were you working on before?"
"Something that is vital if you want to escape from here." He responded bluntly.
"Oh…er…when is that going to be?" I asked slowly.
"Tonight, Mr. Malfoy." I looked at him, with a shocked expression on my face. Tonight?!
"But, Professor…Hermione's unconscious at the moment…and she's under the care of Voldemort…we can't do it tonight! She's not fit to…and anyway, Voldemort is going to be watching over her all night!" I protested, though I had wanted to leave this place as soon as possible.
"It has already been organized. There has been so much planning done for this to happen…we will not have another chance. Do not fret, we will take care of that, it is only a matter of distraction." Replied Snape calmly. He seemed completely confident that it would work.
"And what is the plan exactly?" I asked archly.
"The plan is for you both to be in your room at midnight, so that I can come and fetch you and then we will wait for five minutes and as the Watchers that patrol the estate switch shifts, you will take a Portkey back to Hogwarts. It is as simple as that." He answered smoothly. There was something he was keeping from me again.
"It's not really that simple is it, Professor? Otherwise why are you so touchy about me finding you here, making some potion?" I shot back defiantly. Snape gave me a sour look and sighed.
"No, you are quite right, Draco. It isn't simple at all, it's actually quite complex…but we mustn't talk of these matters here. It isn't safe. I will arrange for you to meet me after dinner in the Rose Courtyard alright? We will talk more then. But meanwhile, tell me what's wrong with Hermione?" he changed the subject tactfully and I immediately became worried again.
"I don't know…I was walking with Voldemort, when I heard this cry for help and then I ran back up the hill to find Hermione because I couldn't see her. She was lying next to the place where all the Dark instruments were kept and she was unconscious, and then Voldemort transported her back to the manor…I found out from Wormtail that she's in her room and He is in there too." I replied to his question.
"Are you worried?" asked Snape snidely.
"Yes, extremely. I have this feeling that He is going to do something to her. Enchant her or something…surely He knows that we are going to run." I answered truthfully.
"Perhaps the enchantment has already begun." Mumbled Snape, more to himself than to me.
"Sorry? I didn't quite catch that." I said, curious as to what he was thinking.
"It was nothing of importance. Now, Draco go back to your room before anyone suspects anything, I will meet you in the Rose Courtyard after dinner tonight. Be as discreet as possible." He said quietly.
I nodded and swiftly left the dungeon, with a million things that I wanted to ask him about…it really bothered me that he wouldn't tell me anything that really mattered…after all, I had a right to know what the whole plan was right? But, at least for now I was satisfied, we were finally leaving this place for good.
I sauntered to Hermione's room, wary of the people inside…was it just Voldemort or were half of the Death Eaters also in there too?! The racket that they were making was so loud that I wondered if Hermione was still unconscious or not. I edged closer to the door and put my ear to it, hoping to hear what they were making such noise for.
"My Lord, do you think that it is wise to allow them to wander unmonitored? I haven't seen Mr. Malfoy for the whole day…what if he is up to something?" asked a petulant voice.
"I know what is the right thing to do, Avery. I do not need you to tell me what to do." Replied Voldemort icily. A disgruntled sound came at that reply.
"But, my Lord…Avery does have a valid point. Perhaps, we should keep an eye on Mr. Malfoy, just to prevent anything from upsetting the plan." Pleaded another voice.
"I want absolute silence from you all! I can't stand any of this infernal racket, and neither does my heir, no doubt. Get out of the room at once! Miss Lestrange needs her rest." Hissed Voldemort angrily, and thanks to my Quidditch reflexes, I darted quickly to the end of the corridor before they could open the door.
The Death Eaters that were present in the room, now filed slowly out and I noticed that they didn't come down the corridor that I had hidden in, but rather went a couple of steps down the corridor in the other direction and prodded at the rose wallpaper with their wands. To my amazement [though I shouldn't have been surprised at all] the wallpaper slid aside to reveal a dark passageway which the Death Eaters all walked into.
As they disappeared from sight, I had an instinctive feeling that I should follow them, and I was irritated to realize that I didn't have my wand yet. I had to get to the passageway before it closed, and I quickly rushed to the section of the wallpaper, which was still open, and slipped stealthily in.
I followed the beam of light that was clearly coming from a wand somewhere in front of me and I was careful to make my footsteps light, but the plodding of one of the Death Eaters made me relax. It was probably Crabbe and Goyle seniors making that heavy noise. I was curious to see where this passageway would lead, and how useful it would be later on for us, and soon, I watched as the light bobbed out of sight.
"Now that the Dark Lord is finally out of earshot, let us discuss what has been going on lately." Said Avery's voice importantly.
As the passageway twisted and turned, I was able to hide behind a bend to prevent them from seeing me. I discovered in shock that the passageway led straight to the dark summerhouse that I had found Hermione lying unconscious at this morning. I watched helplessly as the wall of the summerhouse closed on me, and I realized that I was trapped until another Death Eater came.
"Shit." I swore under my breath.
Thankfully for me though, I could still hear the voices from the summerhouse and that I would be able to find out some information about the mysterious Death Eaters. I looked down at the Black Star burnt into my palm and I flinched; it was burning again, and it was blood red.
The Dark Lord was calling for me.
As painful as the burning was becoming, I forced myself to concentrate on the Death Eaters' discussion, I had missed half of it already.
"The Dark Lord has entrusted me with this information. I can not betray Him…the consequences are too fearful to even imagine." Squeaked a voice I recognized as Wormtail's.
"Speak now, or we will torture the information out of you." Growled an angry voice, it was Avery's crony, Nott.
"He…He has a grand plan that will destroy the Wizarding world…" answered Wormtail in a terrified voice.
"Tell me something that we didn't know." Hissed Avery suavely. I heard a squeal of pain and cackles of evil laughter.
"He will kill the girl…He will kill the double crosser…and He will imprison the other one. He knows all. He knows what they are up to." Shrieked Wormtail madly. He seemed to be deranged.
I gasped, from the searing pain and from shock. He knew. And He was coming for me now…what hope was there?
Was there any hope for us at all? Or would I be made to sleep with Hermione to give Voldemort His precious bloody powerful heir and then thrown into the dungeons, powerless to stop Him from killing the last two good people in this filthy place?! I thought bitterly.
There is always hope. I smiled weakly at that before fainting from the agony of the Black Star.
--
Voldemort paced around Hermione's room restlessly as He waited for His heir to appear. When Draco failed to do so, His red eyes narrowed and He smiled fiendishly. He knew what he was up to, He knew everything that went on in the manor, though He feigned ignorance to strengthen His position.
They would never know what would hit them tonight.
His lips continued to curl in their horrible smile as He watched Hermione turn slowly in her sleep. He placed a soothing cool hand on her forehead and she immediately relaxed, sighing contentedly in her sleep. Her dreams were sweet and full of hope. Little did she know who was watching them too, He who watched decided that she needed a change of genre.
She then dreamt of her parents.
--
Draco's POV
I felt myself getting shaken awake, I groggily moved my head to try to focus my blurred vision.
"Draco." Said a familiar voice urgently. It was Snape.
"Professor?" I asked dizzily.
"What happened?! What are you doing here? How did you get here?" Snape demanded irately.
"I followed some Death Eaters. Then I got trapped. Then I got burnt. Then I fainted." I replied sardonically. I was regaining some alertness and I was feeling better than I had been before, I glanced briefly at the Black Star and was relieved to find it was still jet black.
"Burnt? The Black Star was burning? What cheek you have, Mr. Malfoy. You are stuck in the middle of a Death Eater passageway and you faint and you still have the impertinence to make it seem extremely normal." He seethed and then he forced my mouth open and tipped my head back to pour in some sort of foul smelling potion.
"Ugh! What the hell was that?!" I spluttered.
"Something that makes you feel better. Now, lets get out of this place." He replied smoothly.
He led me to the summerhouse wall and put his ear to it, checking if anyone was in it now. When he was positive it was deserted, he slid open the door and we passed through the dark summerhouse though in reality it was just a big open garage style place with heaps of Dark instruments.
I was dumfounded to find that night had already fallen and that we were going to be putting our plan into action soon. Suddenly, memories of what I had heard from the Death Eaters came rushing back and I hurriedly began to gabble to Snape.
"What on earth are you gibbering about Malfoy?!" he sneered.
"Professor, Voldemort knows that we're going to try and escape tonight. I heard it from the Death Eaters. I know He's going to stop us with whatever it takes…I don't think we should do it." I said anxiously.
"Don't worry. I have it under control. I'm more worried about Hermione, she wasn't at dinner either, though the Dark Lord was. It was extremely ominous that you weren't there either, but nevertheless I waited for you in the Rose Courtyard, and when you didn't show up, I went looking for you." He explained quietly to me. He then abruptly stopped and opened a door on the hallway we were walking down.
It was a navy blue room and by the various potions on the shelves I knew that it was his room. He quickly shut the door and furtively locked it with several Locking Charms. After that, he beckoned me to follow him into the main part of his room. He sat himself down in a rigid looking chair, which left me a sofa to lounge in.
"Draco. There is something I have to tell you now." He said evenly. I nodded for him to continue.
"Do you have faith in the Dark Lord?" he asked tentatively, "After all you are His heir…you have His blood running through your veins…"
"No." I replied firmly.
"Then concentrate on that thought for a moment."
I did and in disbelief, I watched as the navy blue elegance, and the extravagant furnishings disappeared from Snape's room and I saw that I wasn't sitting on a sofa, but on a pile of dirty blankets piled on top of a stiff chair. My eyes widened in disgust and I quickly stood up, drawing my attention to my robes and I gasped, they weren't robes…they were nothing close! They were rags, torn, thin and flimsy, and I realized that we were sitting in a dank dungeon with water dripping from the ceiling.
"What –"
"You have been Disillusioned by the Dark Lord." Replied Snape simply.
"Can you –"
"No. I too, have been Disillusioned, and it is so strong that none can pull free from its bewitching grasp…except for you and Hermione. It is the Dark Lord's strongest asset, apart from His command of the Unforgivable Curses and His near immortality." Explained Snape sharply.
I looked at him, just absorbing the information and he suddenly smiled at me.
"You have taken the first true step towards the Light side, Draco." He stated with a type of joy that I had never seen in him, "You have denounced Him."
Hey everyone!
Again, I apologize for the long time it took me to upload this chapter. Sorry!
Well, I hope you guys like the way the story's going, its got a lot of planning in it, and romance will come soon again =) oh, and I'm going to the change the genre…I don't think 'drama' suits this story now…its more like action adventure…
Anyway, enough of my rambling. Thanks to the great people that reviewed last chapter! Here's your replies…
Brandi – I'm glad u like Voldemort being nice…well he isn't really being nice…its just a different side to him… I guess =P thanks for reviewing!
PurrtyFlirty – wow. You stayed up until when reading this?! Omg…I am so honoured =) haha, and what do you mean you hate the 'hey everyones'?! Say thanks to your friend for me too =)
Lena – um…I don't know where to start…thank you so much for your compliments…I was so pleased and happy =) so you're another person who likes the way Voldemort is? Well, he's a bit more…evil in this chapter…anyway, thanks so much for your review!
Katrina Darkus – Lol, I hate the thought of Hermione with Harry and Ron… its just wrong…they're such good friends…why ruin the unique bond by falling for each other? =P sorry, that's just my opinion…don't mind me…
Mogli the Witch – you share my point of view on OotP =) it really was quite disappointing eh? So, you usually ready NC-17? Well, I'm sorry my story is nowhere near that…but thanks for your review!
Divine Sorceress – hey again! Sorry I didn't do the Draco's POV…it didn't fit in with the story and it would stretch the story a bit…sorry again! But thanks for coming to review again =)
Jinxy – Hey! I'm glad you like the story! Thanks so much for your review…did you like the rest of the story?
Alright, peace out!
[don't forget to review]
psychohart