…The sun is gone,

The nights are long,

And I am left while the tears fall.

-The All-American Rejects.

Disclaimer: I own not HP, or any of the characters you see here…but I am grateful to be able to use them! Love you J.K!

A/N: Hey guys, sorry it's being so long, but it was under circumstances I really couldn't help.  I was moving house and we no longer have two phone lines so it will be a long time between updates.  Thanks for reviewing, though! As I write this, I am nearing 100 reviews, which is more than I EVER hoped for!! I love you all!! Enjoi!

Last Time: (In Harry's POV)

We found two seats together near the back amidst sniggers from Crabbe and Goyle and took out our books.  I skimmed the page, trying to absorb the information fruitlessly.   I could see Hermione already taking notes, having already read the chapter.  She was sitting next to Lavender.   I looked around the classroom, ready to see the tall blonde sneering at me.  But Malfoy wasn't there at all.  And it looked as though Hermione had noticed it too. 

--Hermione's POV—

It was in Potions, our first lesson for the day with the Slytherins, that I first noticed that Draco wasn't there.  I thought, at first, that he might just be sick or something.  But as the day wore on I grew more and more certain that something was wrong.  At lunch that day, instead of joining Lavender and Parvati (who I had been sitting with since my fight with Harry), I made my way up, as quickly as I could without dropping the books that filled my arms, to our dormitories. 

I flung open the door to the common room, my breath almost rasping in the cold.  The fire was crackling away merrily, and as soon as I saw it I knew he was there.  I ran over to the couch, where he was sitting.  He wasn't reading or anything – just sitting there, staring into the fireplace as though possessed.

"Draco?" I said quietly, trying to hide the note of urgency in my voice.

"I've just spoken to my father," he said, sounding oddly dazed.

"Your father?" I said gently, surveying him as he lay sprawled on the couch.  "Draco, your father is in Azkaban."

"Yes, I know." He said impatiently.  "Or at least, he was."

"You mean he's escaped?!" I yelped, this time failing altogether to hide any surprise.  "What did he say to you?!"

"He just said…"he swallowed, and then seemed to think better of saying anything.  "It doesn't matter," he muttered.

"Draco, it does matter!  He's a criminal, he belongs in Azkaban-"

"Just shut up, alright?" he snarled angrily.  "You can't judge him.  You're just a filthy little Mudblood."

I gasped and Draco's hand flew over his mouth.  "Hermione…I'm sorry, I didn't mean it-" He broke off without any interruption from me when he noticed the horrified look on my face.  He fell silent with a helpless look on his face.

"Yes, you did," I said coldly, before fleeing to my room.

Draco's POV

As soon as Hermione left, I ran after her.  "Hermione!" I yelled desperately.  "It didn't mean anything – it was just a…a reflex-"

She stopped and turned around.  "And do you think that makes it any better?" she snarled.  "Draco, I honestly thought I felt something with you." Her tone was softer and her eyes filled with unshed tears, but then she swallowed and stood up a little straighter.  "But now I know that you haven't changed at all."  She strode the few metres left to her door and slammed it, leaving me standing dejectedly in the darkened hallway.

I couldn't think of anything better to do than go to bed, even though it was only nine o'clock pm.  I climbed into my four poster bed, snuggling absently under the warm sheets.  I didn't want to go over the conversation with my father ever again, but my mind kept replaying it with some sick form of satisfaction.

Flashback

I was sitting in front of the fire before Lucius's head appeared, staring into the flames, thinking devotedly about everything.  I jumped when there was a small pop and his head appeared there, the white-blonde tresses falling weirdly into the flames.  He leered at me as I gasped for breath, walking slowly towards the fire. 

"Father…Father, what are you doing here?" I gasped.  "You were in Azkaban, you killed mo-"  I stopped myself as I saw the ugly look cross his face.

"I did kill your Mother, I won't deny it.  But can't you see, Draco, it was her own fault-"

"It wasn't her fault," I growled, finding strength in coldness, my specialty.  "You always hurt her, and she couldn't stop you – she was helpless-"

"Shutup, boy!" My father roared.  "I came here in the hope of convincing you – no, offering you-  to take the Mark this summer."

"I don't want the Mark!" I yelled, forgetting again to "speak with respect". "I won't be like you! I won't suck up to Voldemort to keep from dying for a just cause! I won't keep killing after he dies just to save face! I won't do it, Lucius, and you can't force me to do it, not now that you're on the run…"

"Suit yourself," he said shortly, sounding oddly calm about it.  "But I can assure you, Draco, there will be consequences."  And with that, he disappeared as quickly as he had come, leaving me with a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. 

End Flashback

I drifted off then, after reliving the conversation hundreds of times.  "…I can assure you, Draco, there will be consequences…" It had not come as a shock when my father offered the Mark to me, but before now, I hadn't thought I was sure what I was going to say when the day came.  Now, though, I was sure I had known it all along, though perhaps not as openly as my father had when he decided.  I didn't want the Mark at all.  In fact, I wanted to fight it and all that it stood for.

A/N: I know this was quite short too, but it is, after all, my style! Muahahahah!  But seriously, I thought it was a pretty big event in this chapter so I didn't want to sound indifferent about it by going on forever about other stuff and just moving on after it happened in the same chapter, if you know what I mean.  Please – PLEASE review!! And thanks so much to everyone for helping me reach the big 100!!! Well, I'm practically there, anyways! It makes me SO happy to know that there are people reading and reviewing at every chapter! I love you all so much and thanks heaps! J