Slytherinprinces23: Thanks.
Scholcomp25: Thanks. I'll try to update quickly, but I like to make my chapters as long as possible.
Confusedthoughts: Who doesn't get tired of you? Yeah, I know, it's short, but I'm trying, okay? Have my head for a lemon? Well, first of all, you can't have my head cuz I believe it's firmly attached to my neck and there is no way you can get to it. And do you even know how to contact my parents? Uh huh. That's what I thought.
Sexyslytherin2: Nah, I was just kidding. I'm updating!
Iamm3: Thanks. But, I like my cliffhangers! It's the best thing about my chapters!
Looby Lou: Yes, we're all praying that they'll all live. Sigh. I wish J.K. Rowling would use the Draco/Hermione pairing in her book. But, alas, the chances are slim.
Bunnycutie: Thanks. Your review just made me smile.
Blaque-mlss: Thank you. Keep reviewing and I'll keep writing!
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Samantha Cameron: They better be safe? What if I don't want them to be safe? Muhaha! (Excuse me. I just got out of school and I think I'm high.)
Cassandra: It was kinda like… Well, Draco and Hermione have such a strong relationship that he was able to send his thoughts to her, kinda. I don't really know how to explain it. It sounds weird, I know, but I've heard of people who have it.
Alenor: Thanks. Glad you like it. But, just to warn you, I update REALLY slowly.
DrAcO'sblackrose: You would cry! Oh, great, now I feel guilty.
Chapter 25
Draco closed his eyes. Please, Hermione, I need you to get out of there. They're coming for you. You and Mini-Weasley. They're trying to lure Potter into the hands of Voldemort. Please, Hermione, get out of there.
"Stand up, Draco!" a voice ordered. Draco's eyes flew open. Lucius Malfoy hovered above him, an angry glare on his face. "The ceremony is beginning. You will cooperate, understand?"
"Yes, father, I understand," Draco said, bowing his head. Lucius smirked - a smirk quite similar to Draco's.
"Good. I see you are finally recovering from that nasty burn that mudblood gave you. Stand up, boy. I am going to free you of the chains. If you even think of running away…" His voice trailed off threateningly. Draco's insides burned at the 'mudblood' comment, but he held his tongue.
"No, father, I will not. I am ready to perform my services to thy Lord," Draco agreed. Lucius grinned evilly and flicked his wand. The chains instantly disappeared. Draco forced himself to stand up.
"Good… Follow me, Draco," Lucius commanded. Draco urged his legs forward, hoping that they would obey. "Quick. Eat this. You'll need your strength in order to pass the ceremony," Lucius said, thrusting a piece of dry bread into Draco's hands. Draco stared at it, and then stuffed it into his mouth hungrily.
They entered a round chamber. The torches and flames flickered, casting shadows along the wall. A dark red carpet lay on the floor, with pictures of serpents on the sides. "Go." Lucius shoved Draco down the carpet. He stumbled, and then, catching his footing, began to walk down to the end where Lord Voldemort sat.
He stopped where the carpet ended and immediately knelt down, bowing. Lord Voldemort cackled, causing the hair on the back of Draco's neck to rise. "So… are you ready, young Malfoy?" Voldemort rasped.
"Yes, my lord, I am ready to perform my duties," Draco said, staying crouched down on the floor. Voldemort nodded approvingly.
"Very good, young Malfoy. Your father has taught you well. Are you still thinking about that mudblood," he spat out. Draco shook his head fervently.
"No, my master. No. I am not," he fibbed. Voldemort glared at him and narrowed his eyes.
"You lie, young Malfoy. Why?" he demanded. Draco gulped. He racked his brain for a plausible excuse and faltered for a second.
"My lord, I can assure you that I only think of her because I am angry. She has escaped my master, and I find myself furious," he quickly said, emphasizing the last word. Lord Voldemort smirked.
"Very good, young Malfoy. One last question. Why the sudden change in attitude? Suddenly, you are ready to become part of the Dark Side," he challenged. Draco squeezed his eyes shut for an instant. He had been hoping that this question wouldn't come up.
"My master, I truly have no answer for that. The past is behind us. I can only say that I finally have realized the truth – how filthy those mudbloods are," Draco responded. Voldemort looked at him angrily, but then nodded slowly.
"Fine, young Malfoy. We will see how true your loyalty to your lord is AS THE CEREMONY BEGINS!" he declared. All the Death Eaters, who had been waiting in the shadows, stepped out.
Draco stood up, and they all surrounded him. "Malfoy!" Lord Voldemort barked. Draco snapped to attention, but he was summoning his father. "Will you do the honors?" Lucius smirked.
"Very well, my master." He walked up the isle and knelt before Voldemort. Voldemort nodded. Lucius stood up and continued up to Voldemort's throne. He removed a long, iron rod from next to him. On the end, there was the carving of the Dark Mark. Draco watched silently as he held it over a torch, causing it to turn red.
Once it was all red, except for the end where it was held, Lucius brought the rod over to Draco. Draco flinched. "Pull up your sleeve," Voldemort ordered. Lucius smirked evilly. Draco groaned inwardly. Oh God. Here we go. Think about Hermione…
He tugged loosely at his cloak, revealing his tanned skin. Voldemort smiled. "Good. Lucius…" he beckoned. Lucius raised the rod and…
The pain was unbearable as Lucius pressed the hot iron against his skin. He winced and gasped as the throbbing seared through his arm. Glancing down, he realized that his flesh was a dark red. Hermione. Hermione. Just concentrate on Hermione.
"Ahh, Malfoy. Quite strong, are you now? Normally our Death Eaters are screaming out in pain by now. Press harder, Malfoy!" Voldemort cried. Draco let out another gasp and Lucius thrust the rod into his skin harder.
Hermione. Hermione… He began to picture her face, every detail of her. Closing his eyes, he focused on illustrating every aspect of her in his mind. "Harder!" Voldemort cried, shocked at Draco's calm face.
Lucius dug the rod into this skin. Draco winced inwardly, but tried to stay focused. "The young Malfoy is handling this quite well. He'll be extraordinary on our side," the Dark Lord commented. "That is enough."
Much to Draco's relief, Lucius lifted the rod from his arm. Draco glanced down and saw that his skin was red. Surprisingly, it hadn't burnt through the skin. "There are spells to prevent too much burning," Voldemort snarled, noticing Draco's shock. The redness slowly began to fade away, and, in its place, Draco saw the Dark Mark. The sight of it made him sick.
When he looked back up, he saw all the Death Eaters kneeling before him. When he turned questioningly, Voldemort said, "Congratulations. You're one of us now."
Draco paced back and forth nervously. He was ready for his first task. Even if it was a big jump.
1 HOUR AGO
"Take Crabbe and Parkinson to go retrieve Potter's girlfriend and that mudblood friend of his. Then bring them back here. We'll have McNair ready to guard them. That should lure foolish Potter here," Voldemort cackled. Lucius bowed before him.
"Yes, master."
"My lord, could I not guard them?" Draco begged, leaping forward to kneel before him. Lucius glared at him, but Lord Voldemort just looked amused.
"You? Guard them? I don't think so, young Malfoy. Not after your previous… relationship with that mudblood," he said. But Draco refused to take no for an answer.
"Please, my master! I will torture them so! Besides, should you not test my strength against the Potter? Am I not your ultimate weapon for defeating him?" Draco pleaded.
"I must admit, young Malfoy, you have a point. Yet, this all seems a little suspicious to me… Very well, we will test your strength against Potter. But, if you let him escape…" he threatened. Draco smirked inwardly.
"I won't, my master. I can assure you that," he swore, crossing his fingers behind his back. Voldemort stared at him sternly.
"On the Dark Side, somebody's word is always meaningless. We break vows all the time. Remember that, young Malfoy. I will be posting guards outside of the chambers you are in, to make sure. Torture them, young Malfoy. I expect to hear screams echoing through my hallways," he said, smiling evilly. Draco forced a smirk back.
PRESENT TIME
Draco stopped pacing and slid onto the ground. He began to concentrate on Hermione. Please, Hermione, stay where you are. Stay in Grimmauld Place. They're going to come for you, but it will be all right. Let them come. Let them take you. Please, Hermione, trust me in this.
Hermione thought of Draco. It hurt to remind herself of him, but she felt she had to do it. Oh, Draco, where are you right now? Please be okay. Suddenly, an image of Draco filled her mind. "Stay in Grimmauld Place. They're going to come for you, but it will be all right. Let them come. Let them take you," Draco's voice said. The voice echoed through her head.
Hermione froze. What? They're coming?She leapt out of her chair and headed towards Lupin's room when she paused. He said that I should… let them take me? Hermione was unsure of what to do. Do you trust Draco or not? …Yes, I do, but this is just weird… Draco said that it will be okay, though. She reluctantly sat back down. Moody would probably make me leave. After all, he doesn't exactly trust Draco.
She sighed and closed her eyes. Nothing to do now… except wait.
Hermione paced back and forth. Jesus, I can't even go to sleep now. Suddenly, a large blast of green light filled the room. Hermione opened her mouth to scream, but then clamped her jaws shut. I can't make a sound. Or Lupin and Moody will come up.
There stood three people – one of them was Lucius Malfoy. The other two looked suspiciously familiar – resembling Crabbe and Pansy Parkinson – they must have been their fathers.
Crabbe and Parkinson immediately grabbed Hermione roughly. The violently jerked her towards them and placed her in the center so that they were surrounding her. With a snap of Lucius' fingers, they disappeared and reappeared in the dungeons of Lord Voldemort. A cold voice nearly made her jump out of her skin.
"Well… Look what we have here…"
Hermione whirled around to see Voldemort, sitting in his chair. A small fire was behind him. She swallowed hard and tried to look defiantly at the Dark Lord. "Hmm… Not scared, are we? Well, I wonder if a Crucio could change that…" he murmured. Hermione paled. Voldemort laughed evilly.
"Very good, Mudblood. Just cower in fear… Take her to the chambers!" he shouted. Two DeathEaters rushed forward and grabbed her arms. They dragged her out of the room. Hermione stared as they went down a long hallway and stopped by a metal door. Kicking it open, they pulled her inside.
Inside, she saw the last person she expected to see, but the one person she wanted to see the most.
"Draco!"
Draco fidgeted nervously. "Don't think you're going to get it easy, Mudblood," the first Death Eater warned. Draco's blood boiled at the name, but he stood still. "He isn't your precious little boyfriend anymore. In fact, your boyfriend even offered to guard you while you're here. To make sure you don't get away."
Hermione looked shocked. She stared at Draco, her eyes torn between confusion, betrayal, love and doubt. Did Draco really say that? I don't believe it. I can't believe it. He said he loved me. He can't just forget that. Draco shook his head just slightly, trying to tell Hermione that it was all a plan. The second Death Eater glared at Draco suspiciously.
"Leave her here. I'll take care of her," Draco croaked, trying to sound like her was threatening her. Hermione gazed at him. She stared straight into his eyes and saw one thing – love. It's all part of the plan, Hermione. I'm not going to hurt you. I promise. Hermione relaxed slightly.
"One more thing, though. Crucio!" the first Death Eater roared, his wand pointed at Hermione. She sank to the ground, writhing in pain. A scream escaped her mouth. Draco stared in disbelief. No! I'm supposed to be "doing" that! He wanted to leap forward and hold Hermione in his arms, but that would surely give them away.
"Master's orders," the second Death Eater explained, with another fierce glare at Hermione. The two spun around and left. The minute the door was shut, Draco knelt down and picked up Hermione.
"Oh, Hermione, I'm so sorry. Please be okay," he murmured, burying his face in her hair. She opened her eyes weakly. "This is all just a plan, Hermione, to get us free. They're getting Mini-Weasley right now, and Potter will surely come after you. We'll all escape together."
"God, Draco, I was so scared. I thought you might be d-…" Her voice trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence. She closed her eyes again. Draco swallowed hard, too pained to see her hurt.
Suddenly, voices echoed throught the hallway. Hermione's eyes flew open, and Draco saw fear in them. He began to breathe heavily. "I'm sorry, Hermione. But I have to lock you up now," he quickly whispered. He carried her over to a small cell in the corner of the room and gently placed her inside. The footsteps and voices got louder. Quickly, he pulled the cell door shut and gave Hermione's hand a squeeze through the bars.
Whirling around, he locked the cell door just as several men stepped inside the room. Hermione gasped. "Ginny!"
