Hey all! I'm back! Thanks so much for your generous reviews for the last chapter. They were all very much appreciated. The show must go on so let's get it on!
Disclaimer- I don't own any of this except for my precious plot!
Chapter 7 Training
"WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!"
Draco yelled and fell off his bed. He swore and looked around wildly. The room was dark and he could barely make out the things in front of him.
"Time to get up! Time's passing and you're still in bed! Let's go already." Said a voice. Draco identified it as Dean's. He groaned and rolled over.
"It's already four-thirty. You were supposed to have been up several hours ago. Hurry up now. We only have three days to train you, and you're late." Said another voice. Draco realized that it was Hermione. She and the rest of them were in his room waking him up.
"Can't we train another day?" he asked sleepily. They laughed.
"No way!" exclaimed Ron. "The Festival of Fire is in a week. You'll have to be read by then."
"And that would be…" asked Draco wondering what the hell they were talking about.
"Never mind. We'll tell you later. Right now, it's time for you to get u and start the day!" said Hermione pulling off his blankets. Draco shivered and sat up rubbing his head.
"All right, all right. Let's get this started." Said Draco standing up. They smiled and led him out.
After finishing up a quick breakfast, Draco was led out of the hideout and by the lake. The sun was just coming up, shinning its bright rays on the lake. It sparkled like a million diamonds all together. Draco stood to the side while Hermione and her clan huddled in a group, quietly whispering about what to do with him. Finally, they parted and stood in front of him.
"Alright Draco, we're going to make this as hard as possible so you will be ready for the festival and Egypt. Throughout the day, we're putting you a series of tests. Your sword fighting skills are excellent so we don't have to work there. Your sneaking skills are zero and your quietness is zero." Said Hermione as she began to circle him. "This may take some work, but I think we can do it and have a successful thief!"
The day had begun. Hermione and her clan led Draco from the lake and to a small village that had been deserted. They stopped there.
"This looks good. Okay, let's get started." Said Hermione surveying the land around her. "Now fist thing's first. We have to teach you the seven guidelines that our clan goes by. Mind you, they aren't rules, so if you don't go by them, you won't be punished, but it will make things a lot easier if you do follow them." She explained as she led him over to a small building where Harry, Dean, and Blaize were standing by.
"Our first rule is 'Never leave a trail. It makes you easier to track.' This means to always keep yourself clean. Some guards are very smart while others are just stupid. Some have been trained very well, so you'll need to out smart them. Leaving a trail can be from knocking things over to leaving parts of clothing in different places." Said Harry as he took Draco's arm and led him inside followed by Dean and Blaize. Hermione stayed outside to check on the others.
"The second rule is 'Always carry a pocket knife. It can save your life.' Here." Said Dean as he handed a Draco a small knife. "These little babies can solve a lot of problems such as cutting through ropes and some locks are able to be picked with those." They kept walking until they got to the top of the building.
"Okay Draco, now your goal is to get to the bottom of this building. Crabbe and Goyle are patrolling in here. Don't worry." Said Blaize laughing a little when he saw Draco's face pale even more. "They won't hurt you, but if they physically catch you, then you'll have to start over." Draco nodded and they left him. When he saw them exit the building, he began his trip down.
At first, things were going smoothly. Draco was able to get to the second floor without any problems. Suddenly, he heard something behind him. In a mad dash, he tried to run in the opposite direction. A nail on the side on the wall cut him. He yelled and tried to cover his mouth, but it was no use. His arm was bleeding and Crabbe and Goyle had heard him. He could feel them approaching.
Draco looked around wildly for anything that might be able to help him. He took out his knife and run forward. At the end of the corridor, there was a door. It was locked. Draco fumbled with his knife before finally getting it open. He quietly crept in and locked the door again. He was safe for now.
Standing around wasn't helping so Draco began to walk down the hallway. He could see a faint glow at one end. Picking up the pace, he walked as fast as he could to the light. To his delight, it was the exit. Harry, Dean, Blaize, and Hermione were waiting for him. They cheered for him as he stepped out into the sunlight.
"You go, prince." Said Harry smiling at him.
"He's no prince after this. Draco, you've just had your first taste of what it's like to be a thief. Are you ready for doing this all the time?" asked Hermione also smiling as the four walked towards him.
"I'm no prince any more. I'm a thief." Said Draco as he tore a piece of his clothes to cover his cut.
"Well, that's it for today. Let's go home and eat." Dean said rubbing his stomach. Draco looked at him with wild eyes.
"What?! You mean that you got me up early just to quit in two hours?" asked Draco furious at them for this.
"This only one part of your training. We have more to do at home. But for now, we're going home to eat and then we'll do some studying of the palaces and other places that we steal from." Said Blaize as the other thieves came and they all walked back.
"Don't worry. We'll be back tomorrow." Assured Dean.
Dean was true to his word. The next day, they came back to the abandoned village. This time, Ron and Justin took him to another building.
"You've learned two of the rules. Now here's our third. 'Never hurt the innocent. It always makes a mess if you do.' This means that if you encounter women or children and even mean, you shouldn't hurt them. This is what separates different clans. Some kill and some don't. We don't." explained Ron as they reached the foot of the building.
'The fourth rule is 'Steal only what you need. Save some for the rest of the world.' Obviously, you don't need to steal every last bit of the treasure." Said Justin. "If you take to much from a palace, it can disrupt the whole monarchy that we have. They go by how much gold you have rather than ideas for ruling. Besides, you wouldn't steal all the money from a poor family. In fact, you would probably only take a bit of food or nothing at all."
"This test is to see how much you take and how you can avoid guards with the gold. There are other people in there who may rat you out so watch your back." Said Ron as he pushed Draco into the building and giving him a sack. Draco crept along the passage. He cautiously looked each way to see if anyone was going. When no one was there, he quietly ran up several flights of stairs. At the top was the treasure room. Remebering the rule, Draco filled his bag about half full and quickly descended the stairs. At the bottom, he could hear voices, but they didn't sound like Crabbe or Goyle's deep voices. Deciding to take a chance, Draco stepped out in front of them. It was Seamus and Neville.
"Hello Draco. How's the stealing going?" asked Seamus in a very fake sweet voice. Draco could immediately tell this was going to be hard.
"Alright I guess." He answered all the same. Seamus and Neville smirked at each other.
"Well get ready. GUARDS!!! IT'S A THIEF! HE'S GOT THE TREASURE!" yelled Neville. Draco made a mental note not to think that Neville was as innocent as he thought. He wanted to hit Neville, but he remembered the rules and run instead. It was the wrong direction.
At the end of the corridor, Draco heard thumps of large feet hitting the floor. Draco stopped in his tracks and looked for a hiding spot. There was no opening in any direction and the footsteps were growing louder by every second. He looked up. There was his answer! The roof had several planks to climb on. Draco quickly threw his bag up there and jumped up to reach them. Barely making it, he climbed on and crouched back into the shadows as Crabbe and Goyle passed under him. When the coast was clear, Draco carefully slid down and went to the end of the hallway. It was the door! He was free.
The sun was barely up when Draco got out of the building. Ron and Justin were waiting for him. They cheered for him as they walked toward him. Seamus and Neville also came out smiling at Draco and congratulating him.
"Well done! Sorry about having to rat you out." Said Neville sheepishly. Draco smirked.
"Good thing for those rules because I was about ready to kill you." Said Draco. They laughed and began to walk back to their hideout.
The next morning, Hermione led Draco out into the village. The others were already there.
"Okay Draco, this is the last day. You've passed all of the tests so far. There are only a few more rules." Said Hermione as they entered the village.
"What are they?" he asked.
"Our fifth rule is 'Always have an escape route and a spare escape route in case the first one fails.' The sixth is 'Steal in solo or duo. Three's company and four's just too many.' And last is 'Be willing to help your fellow thieves in case of emergency.' That is probably the most important one. Most thieves forget each other, but we feel that our members are far more important then anything." Explained Hermione. In the center of the village, everyone was waiting for them.
"What's my challenge for today?" asked Draco looking from one to the other. They looked at Hermione.
"I declare a rematch." Said Hermioine with a smirk as she picked up a sword that was lying on the ground. Draco noticed another sword on the ground and quickly picked it up. He jabbed at her. She recoiled, but just barely.
"Ready for this?" she asked still smirking. "The first one to corner the other wins." She threw a jab at him, and he blocked. The fight had begun.
Up and down, all around the village they fought. They would go into buildings and out. The rest of the clan watched from the outside to see if one would emerge. They would, but still fighting. Then they disappeared into the largest building yet. The clan watched all around, waiting to see what would happen.
Inside, no one was winning. Hermine would jab; he would block. Things went back and fourth. Their moves were fancy and their swords battled. Finally, Draco knocked Hermione's sword out of her hand. She was cornered. She smiled.
"Well done." She said grinning. He helped her up and they walked out. Hermione held up his hand in triumph. Her clan cheered and ran over to them.
"Fantastic fight!" yelled Dean clamping Draco on the back.
"Bloody brilliant" exclaimed Ron. They talked vigorously about the fight as they walked back to their hideout.
"I think he's ready for his first real steal." Stated Hermione. "The palace just north of here got another shipment of gold, and their guards are so dumb. I think it's a good start." They agreed and walked back inside.
Hermione and Draco lingered just a little behind them. Just as they were entering the dinning room, she pulled him a side.
"Great job, prince." She complimented and her soft lips touched his cheek. Electric charges were sent flying through Draco's body as she pulled away. She smiled and went to join the others.
Draco stood there, limp and unable to move. He touched his cheek and smiled. There was still a chance with Hermione, and some how, she would be his one-day.
A/N: Whew! That was fun to write! Thanks so much for reading! Sorry it too so long. I'll be updating some more on Saturday night. Till then! Thanks again and please review!
Me,
RonFan