Chapter Nine
(Ha! I did it! I wrote a new chapter! HAHAHAHA! SOD YOU HOMEWORK!!!! *ahem* Sorry about that… This chapter may not be as well written but it's something right? Ah well, hope you all like it! As I said, this is a descriptive chappie and I don't really like it, I got very uncomfortable writing some of it… as I always seem to...! *smiles* Will the damsel in distress escape? Read on…)
Draco instantly opened his eyes as he felt a sharp pain shoot across his head. What was that? He thought with annoyance but he didn't linger on the thought for long, he had a job to do. His fingers stroked her neck, only to meet something cold and metallic that burnt them like it was the hottest object in the world.
Draco quickly withdrew his hand with a slight yelp of pain but his fingers had got caught around the object… a chain of a necklace. The necklace pendant was revealed as Draco untangled his fingers from the burning chain .
His head began to throb slightly and he felt weak suddenly. His eyes then caught a glint of silver reflecting the moon so he couldn't help looking down at it. Draco's dark eyes widened as the pain and weakness increased dramatically. It was the heart and cross locket that he had given her.
Realisation, pain and anger filed him as he hissed and jumped back, his hands in front of him in a pointless defence. As he jumped, the weakness over-powered him and his legs gave way.
Even though he was lying on the ground with his hands over his throbbing head, he could still see its unnatural shine. It was as if the damned thing was imprinted on his eyelids. He could still feel the pain and the strength was leaving him.
It was as if someone had thrown a bucket of ice-cold water over her while she was still asleep. Hermione snapped back out of the trance with a gasp and stared around her like an animal who knew it was being hunted.
Where am I? What's happening? How did I get- she stopped in mid-thought as her eyes fell on the familiar figure shaking on the ground.
Hermione knew she should've run at that moment, every impulse and sense was ordering her to do so but curiosity got the better of her. She approached with caution, "D-Draco?" she asked shakily as she knelt down beside and gave his shoulder a shake. She could feel the cold through his clothes. What happened next happened far too quickly for Hermione to register in time and do anything about it.
Draco swiftly turned over on the ground and snatched the necklace off her neck. Hermione screamed and jumped back from him in total surprise and shock just as Draco swore loudly at the necklace that was burning his hand. He threw it away and rubbed his hand with his head down.
For a moment longer Hermione sat in shock as she rubbed the back of her neck, it was painful where Draco had broken it off. She stared at the boy sitting just several feet away from her, cradling his hand and his face shadowed. That moment was a moment too long.
Draco was no longer weak and in pain, he sat up and glared at Hermione with dull eyes rimmed with blood red and bared his sharp teeth in anger and irritation. Hermione stared and crawled further backwards, too terrified to scream.
"No more games…" Draco hissed at her. His voice was like ice-cold water being splashed over hot metal. This time, she did scream. She screamed as loud as her lungs and voice could handle and she staggered up to her feet, beginning to run back to the safety of the castle.
Draco was quick to follow; he wasn't going to let her get away from him. He wasn't going to let this plan fail. He caught up with her easily, putting his arm around her neck, he managed to pull her to the ground and pin her down.
Hermione screamed loudly again as she thrashed out at him, "GET OFF ME! GET OFF! SOMEONE, PLEASE HELLLLP!!!"
Draco knelt over the top of her and pinned her arms down with one of his hands, with his other hand he put a finger to her mouth to silence her. "Hey… none of that, eh? Calm down," he whispered.
Hagrid was sitting comfortably in his armchair with his usual cup of teas before bed. He was about to finish it off when he heard a loud scream. He automatically jumped up and listened again. As soon as he heard the second, more urgent, scream followed by a cry for help, he grabbed his cross-bow and called for Fang before rushing out of the door.
"I should've listened to Harry and Ron! I can't believe it… I trusted your word you… you evil, lying, sneaky bastard!" Hermione screamed in his face as she writhed around trying to get free, it was impossible. His grip was too strong. She kept her eyes away from his; she was not prepared to let things repeat themselves. Hermione was near to tears.
Draco remained calm, "But I'm doing you a favour. I thought you wanted this. The two of us, together… for all eternity…" he whispered in a taunting voice.
A tear escaped down Hermione's cheek, "Draco… please… don't…" she pleaded, breathing heavily.
Draco soothed in her ear, "It will be OK," he wiped the tear away, "would I do anything to hurt you?"
Hermione didn't reply. She wanted to scream but she had no energy left and she knew it wouldn't be any use anyway.
Just as she felt Draco drawing closer to her, she heard a howl growing closer towards them, then a yell and a great weight being shoved off her. She blinked and sat up, looking wildly around her in all directions until she saw what she was looking for.
Hermione smiled and sighed with relief when she saw Fang snarling at Draco and dragging him down to the ground every time he tried to escape. Then came the voice of Hagrid.
"What's goin' on 'ere? Hermione… that you?"
"Hagrid!" she breathed and ran to him, arms outstretched, "Thank you! Thank you so much!"
"Are yeh okay? What happened?" he asked in concern.
Meanwhile, Draco was pelting it to the forest with Fang fast on his heels.
"Get away you lousy mutt! Don't you have some toys to slobber over or something? Get away or I'll get a slipper onto you! GO!" Draco yelled at it.
Hagrid and Hermione looked up as Draco jumped up into a tree as if gravity wasn't an issue for him and he began taunting Fang, who was snarling and growling at the bottom of it. "HA!" Draco taunted. He then turned his attention to Hermione. "Don't think for a second that you're safe now, Granger! Sleep with one eye open!" with that, he disappeared into thin air with a very bemused looking Fang yelping.
Hermione, still hugging Hagrid, burst into tears. Hagrid was looking slightly confused.
"Was that Malfoy?" he asked.
Hermione sniffed, "Yes… well, not entirely, no… I mean… Oh, Hagrid, I don't know what to think!"
Hagrid hugged the girl close as they walked back to the castle, "Come on, tell me what happened."
"I can't… please, just take me back to the common room."
*~*~*~*~*~*
"Don't you dare touch it!" Harry breathed threateningly.
Ron sat and stared at Harry's rebuilt card tower with a grin. "Need I remind you that I don't have to touch it to make it collapse?"
"Don't do anything to it!"
"It's just a bloody card tower! Now I know what my replacement is. If I was being threatened by and evil dark lord and so was the tower… you'd save the tower!"
"You know that's not true!" Harry smiled. "Look at it! My greatest achievement!"
At that point, the portrait hole opened and Hagrid came in with Hermione. Hermione burst into tears again and ran over to Harry, throwing her arms around him, "I'm so sorry Harry! I'm so, so, so sorry! I should've believed you! It was horrible! Oh Harry!"
Harry was struggling to breathe under her grip, "Hermione…" he squeaked, "Grip… loosen… please!"
"Sorry!" she stepped back.
"What's wrong with you?" Ron and Harry asked in unison, both looking concerned.
Hermione sighed and sat down on the sofa, knees up to her chin and her arms around them.
"Hagrid, what's wrong with her?" Harry asked as Ron walked over and put his arms around his shaking friend.
Hagrid shrugged, "She wouldn't tell me what happened but I found her outside with… this makes no sense to me, but she was with Malfoy. Does that… Harry?" Hagrid stopped when he saw the look on Harry's face.
Harry turned to Ron, who was staring back with the same look etched on his face.
"Hermione… are you okay?" Ron asked urgently.
"Does it look as if I'm okay?" Hermione snapped.
"Did he hurt you, I mean?"
"No… no, he… I…" she stammered but didn't say any more.
"Don't pressurise her, she'll tell yeh in her own time. Night guys," Hagrid said as he left. "And keep an eye on her."
Harry joined in the hug, "Please, tell us what happened. What did he do to you? I swear if he hurt you, I'll kill him for good!"
Hermione was shaking, "It was scary… I should've listened to you two…"
She then began to tell them the whole thing.
*~*~*~*~*
"Dwaco's back!" the youngest called.
The rest of the group looked up as Draco entered the lair. This was the place the rest of the vampires stayed while Draco stayed in the castle. They were all out here to keep an eye on things and lying in wait for an attack.
Raven ran over and put her arms around him. "So… everything go okay?" she asked with a smile.
"Great!" Draco smiled and replied in a slightly high voice. He knew he was totally screwed now he let Hermione get away, he wasn't prepared to let the rest know, especially Donato.
He looked around him, anything to avoid the look that Raven was giving him. He saw the rest of the group lying around, very bored. The oldest looked about in his thirties, he could've been anything from thirty to over a thousand, while the youngest was a small, blonde girl with huge eyes. Draco got along with most of them, the oldest was the ring leader and was friendly to Draco, most likely on Voldemort's orders, while the youngest seemed to follow him everywhere. Her name was Sylvia, she looked about four or five, although looks can be deceiving in the age of a vampire, and she seemed to see Draco as some sort of role model. She loved him! Then there was Donato. He was sitting in a corner talking to Dario, another one about his age. He didn't get along with either, if his mishap reached their ears, he may as well go out sun bathing.
"DRACO!?" Raven yelled.
Draco jumped, "What?"
"You're hiding something! What's up?"
Draco stared around, Donato had looked up when he heard Raven. Draco grabbed her wrist and pulled her into the underground chamber, where they slept during the day.
"Listen… I'm going to tell you because I trust you, okay?" he said to her.
"What… did… you… do?" she asked slowly.
"I… I… Ilethergetaway…" he said quickly.
Raven raised an eyebrow, "Say what?"
"I let her get away…" he winced.
Raven remained silent for a moment, then a grin spread across her face that was only just noticeable in the faint light of the torches. "Ooooh! Ickle Draco's in big trouble now!" she whispered.
"I know, I know!" Draco moaned. "That's why I need you to keep quiet about it!"
"He will find out some time you know!"
"Not if I get her next time!"
"The plan is ruined now Draco, face it! The master will have to go ahead with this plan and it will not work now!"
"No it's not! The plan was only to get Harry away from his friends so they can't help him… I can fix this, but I need you to keep quiet about it till I do!"
"Okay, I'll keep quiet…" she replied rather reluctantly.
"Thank you!" Draco whispered giving her a kiss.
Outside, Donato and Dario were listening and grinning broadly at this news.
"Oh, this is good!" Dario whispered.
"This will be fun! Come on, I bet you ten Galleons he explodes!" Donato grins as they both disappear.
( There, a nice short chappie to get me started again! Sorry about all of this but I just couldn't stay away from fic writing forever! I'm on my Easter Hols so hopefully I'll be able to write a lot more. It always rains here anyway so, going out won't be an issue! What do you all think? In the next chappie, Harry and Ron take the role of bodyguards while Hermione talks to Lupin and Voldie's reaction to Draco's idiotic mistake… should be fun to write! Now… I've been away from writing for so long… I've forgotten what actually does happen… not good! I'll get it eventually! Byes!)
