Dark Lovers

Chapter 1: Lost

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story but the plot, and maybe some words I make up.

A/N: I wrote the first 3/4 of the story a week or so before I wrote the last part, so tell me if things are messed up or if stuff is missing or something.

Draco hung on to the edge of the cliff with all his might, the musty smell of damp earth and death clogging his nostrils. His wand had fallen down the deep canyon and was probably in splinters at the bottom now. There were screams of terror all around him, and the occasional dead or dying body being flung down the black expanse of the canyon, the thud of their bodies echoing for many minutes after their last breath.

There was a thud above him. He yelled for help, hoping the body that had fallen so close to his hands was a live one. He couldn't get a good enough grip to pull himself up with the sharp rocks he clung to blooding his fingers and his legs flailing uselessly below. The red liquid was making it harder to keep his grasp on the rock. He was slipping now. He heard a rustle and then he was looking up into deep pain filled eyes. He did not know what words to offer that would make this person help him, so he pleaded without words.

Then his hands could hold on no longer and gave out. He yelled out in fear, all hope diminished. He knew he was going to die now.

Hermione rolled over, the pain in her ribs making her gasp. She hoped one of them didn't puncture her lungs. With the little strength she possessed she lifted herself on her elbows and looked over the cliff into sapphire eyes.

She could hear people behind her screaming in terror. Aurors and Death Eaters alike. She thought about the person hanging so precariously on the edge. He had done so much evil he deserved to die. There were others here she hadn't helped, why should she help him? Hermione had resolved to let him fall, closing her eyes against his pleading ones. But when she heard his scream so terror filled, she instinctually reached out and grabbed his hand.

He was too heavy though; she couldn't pull him up by herself. Then out of nowhere a great strength came pouring into her. She didn't know what it was, but she utilized it and pulled Draco to safety.

He finally came up and over the cliff. Hermione fell back and he landed on her. She screamed, the pain from her ribs too much to bear. It was tearing at her insides and her mind was going black. The pain was too much for her brain to comprehend and her body shut down.

Draco didn't know what to do. There was a Death Eater coming towards her body, wand at the ready. As much as he hated her, this girl had just saved his life. He wasn't going to let her die like that. There was no honor in it.

He looked around for something to fight off the Death Eater. All he could find was a large rock. He picked it up and threw straight at the head. The Death Eater easily deflected it. Draco was desperate for something. He could have said that she was already dead, except that he'd already thrown the rock and the Death Eater wouldn't believe him now.

When the Death Eater spoke the words of the deadly unforgivable curse, Draco could do nothing but throw his body squarely in front of Hermione's. Funny, he thought to himself, that two seconds ago he was do everything in his power to live and now he was throwing his life away for a girl he didn't even like.

He closed his eyes and steeled himself, ready to die. But after a few seconds he didn't feel anything. He carefully opened his eyes and looked around him. The war was still waging on all around him, but there was a see-through barrier between him and Hermione's body and the rest of the world. It looked like the curse had bounced off the barrier and hit the Death Eater. The others looked aware of what had happened. Draco shrank back in fear. If the Death Eaters knew what had happened he'd wish he had died, for his punishment for being a traitor would be far greater than any pain he had ever endured.

If I stay here I will surely die. He thought to himself. He stood up to run, but he couldn't leave Hermione there with no one to protect her. She was unconscious and it seemed that Voldemort was winning. She would not be spared. They would kill a young girl who had no defenses. He couldn't allow that.

He bent over and gently picked up Hermione's body, wary of any wounds she may have received. Then he ran as fast as he could, the barrier protecting them as he pushed through the battle to find somewhere safe. He couldn't go home because his father would find him there and hand him over to the Dark Lord without question. If he went to the school, he knew Dumbledore would accept him, but the Dark Lord would find him there easy.

"Hermione!" he heard the voice of Harry yelling for his friend. He had seen Draco carrying her off. Draco didn't even give pause, continuing at a break neck pace towards the copse of trees ahead. The small grouping of trees lead to a large forest where Draco could hide until he figured out what to do. He went one or two miles into the forest until he came to a small stream that became a large river. After a while the stream came to a waterfall. Draco finally put Hermione down in a soft bed of grass near the water then went to investigate the waterfall. There was a shallow cave behind it.

Draco was exhausted and decided the cave would do. He struggled to get Hermione into the cave, and then fell to the hard rock floor totally drained.

The next day, Draco didn't wake until the sun was high in the sky. He judged it to be about noon. He climbed out of the cave, wary of the slippery moss dotting the rocks. Stretching he took a deep breath then sat down at the edge of the river. What was he going to do?

He drank some water and washed his face. There was blood and dirt streaked all over him. He decided to bathe himself in a bit, but first he had to find some food and look over the extremity of Hermione's wounds.

He came back to the cave an hour and a half later, hands full of wild strawberries, the only thing he could find that he knew was edible. He put them in a small pile near the back of the cave then looked to Hermione. She was still out. Though there was blood all over her and her clothes were torn, she looked peaceful while sleeping. He ripped the sleeve off his shirt and held it under the water cascading before him.

He gently rinsed off her face, eyes thoughtful. He wondered why he risked so much for her. He began to think about his experience on the cliff. He was so sure he was going to die. That realization instilled remorse in him for all the horrible things he had done. For the past few months, him and Snape had been talking quite often. Snape had tried to make him understand things like value and honor. Draco didn't really pay attention then, but now he wished he had. He wished Snape were there to help him evaluate his raging emotions.

He felt so much pain and sorrow for all the cruelty he had committed in the name of Voldemort. A stupid man who just WOULDN'T die! How many times had that bastard come back from the dead? He suddenly was seeing his entire life through the eyes of someone else. He was wasting it away doing horrible things for an old, dirty man, getting nothing in return but beatings and the terrible sorrow he felt now. Not anymore. He couldn't live for that fool and his insane plans to take over the world.

He was pulled out of his reverie by the soft moans of the girl in his arms. She was waking up.

He gently pulled her up, then propped her against the wall of the cave, her head on her chest. Then all at once her head snapped up and she was gasping for breath, her eyes moving wildly about searching for answers.

"Calm down, Granger" He had meant for it to come out soft and reassuring, but it was gruff and laced with tension.

Hermione glared at him and moved to say something to him, but all of a sudden was on the floor, clutching at her ribs. She was rolling back and forth in agony and Draco had no idea how to calm her down so he could help her.

"Hermione" he whispered loudly "Hermione please lay still" his tension was rising. She wouldn't just lay still. "Please, just go back to sleep!" he yelled at her in a final effort, and strangely enough she lay still, her eyes closed.

The incident reminded him of the barrier that had protected him when they were escaping the battle. He pushed the thought aside and began to examine Hermione closer. He pulled up her tattered shirt and looked at her stomach. Her ribs were obviously broken. He ran his hands down her, savoring the feel of her soft skin.

"One, two, three…" he counted her broken bones aloud as his fingers continued reverently down her skin. He didn't even realize what all he was doing.

He pulled off his shirt and began to rip it into strips he could use to bind Hermione's waist. He tried to make sure the binding gave solid support, but wasn't too tight.

Then he went back out and looked for some ingredients and something he could use for a pot to help with the pain. He didn't want her next waking to be like the last.

Around five o' clock that day Hermione woke up again. As soon as Draco heard her small moan, he shoved a slightly burning liquid down her throat. After she swallowed it she slapped him.

"What the hell kinda crap are you trying to pull!" Hermione sat up gingerly, wary of her bruised body. She sat very still, ready for the pain to come shooting up her sides, but she just felt a bit sore.

She looked down at her tattered clothes, "turn around!" she yelled at Draco as she proceeded to pull up her shirt and look at her wounds. She was bandaged so well, it looked like Madame Pompfrey herself had done it. Slowly lowering her shirt, Hermione looked at Draco with wonder in her eyes. He had done what she asked and turned around.

"Can I look yet?" he called out patiently.

"Yes…"Hermione said cautiously, taking in all of Draco's polite behavior. "What happened?" She asked, more than a bit confused.

Draco proceeded to tell her all that had transpired from the moment she pulled him from the cliff. Hermione sat there listening, mouth slightly agape.

"And now we're here." He said with finality. He left out the part where he lost his wand. He didn't want her to know he was defenseless. Unless he could somehow conjure up that barrier again, he had nothing with which he could protect himself.

Hermione stared at his chiseled chest for sometime, wondering why he wasn't wearing a shirt and why she wasn't revolted at the sight of his naked abdomen. Then she looked down at herself and it dawned on her that he must have used his shirt to bandage her.

She still didn't know what to make of the situation. It sounded rather far-fetched. In fact, she was beginning to suspect that this was all some twisted form of torture Voldemort had conjured up.

She sat still for a long time just staring at Draco. He didn't seem to notice as he moved around the small cave, cleaning up some little mess he'd made. At some point he told her he was leaving to find some leaves or something they could sleep on. She didn't say a word to him. At first she thought it her perfect opportunity to escape, but after a few minutes of trying to come up with a plan, she realized she was too weak to attempt a self-rescue. She'd just have to wait and see what happened. After about an hour she was starting to get antsy. She didn't know what was going on and she had no strength to defend herself if something should happen. She peered out of the cave, minding the water cascading all around. Where'd Draco go?

Then she saw him, his body glistening in the sun, looking like a god. He was waist deep in water, and he appeared to be washing his hair. Damn he's sexy! Hermione thought to herself as she admired his perfectly sculpted form. She was slowly moving farther out of the cave so she could get a better look at him. Suddenly his blue eyes were on her and she quickly shrank back into the shadows.

What was I doing? I should be forming a plan of escape, not admiring Malfoy's six-pack!

She sat in the back of the cave for a long time, awaiting Malfoy's return, whether in fear or anticipation she wasn't quite sure.

He arrived some time later, smelling good and clean, arms full of various leaves and small green apples. Hermione then realized that even if Malfoy was lying to her about what happened, they would be in that cave for a very long time. She didn't have the strength to travel any great distance, and if Malfoy had carried her there it was because his body was pumping adrenaline.

If we're going to be here a while, I guess I had better make the most of it.

A/N: Well? How'd I do? Please tell me if stuff is missing, or if you have any questions. You guys need to give me some inspiration to write the next chapter, cause I'm going through a bit o' writers block...