Disclaimer: You know the drill.
A/N: Sorry it took so long to update. I've been rather lazy lately. And life is catching up with me...I don't want it to but I can't help it. So sorry once again!
PinkyTheSnowman: I'm glad you're getting a grasp of it! I know, it's sad how Honeydukes went. Tragic. Haha I'm glad you think Luna was looney.
dancerrdw: Thanks!
Siriusly-0bsessed: My lips are sealed.
Tainted13Innocence: LOL. Cute sentence. Yeah Ginny's dead. I'm not sure who I'm going to pair Harry up with now. Harry'll find out the full truth in latter chapters. He still has a few other major things to remember.
mysticofthepen: Haha...well sorry I didn't update as soon as you liked.
mystikalolo: The Voldemort parts are some of my favourite to write too.
bethzc: I love Ron in all his forms too. He's the bestest ever.
hjpchick: I'm glad everyone's in character and Ron isn't most people's favorite person in this story. I wonder why...
daddysgirl101989: Yuck. Do they really make you do that in driver's ed? The a/n at the end was made up of lines from Gwen Stefani songs which I had been listening to at the moment. I will reveal how Ron turned to the dark side eventually. They entered Honeydukes because it was where the passage led up to. Just like what Harry did in POA. You're right, she wouldn't answer him because of his bad manners. I'm glad you liked the quote. So did I. Especially since it's a two part quote and it was kind of a two part chapter.
singdownthemoonHorselvr: He wasn't poisoned but I believe you're on to something.
japanese-jew: Wow are you truely a Japanese Jew? Sorry I just had to ask because that is so cool! Anyways...Life debt? He does owe Harry...for all that friendship I think they both owe each other. And don't worry. No one is marrying three chicks.
TopQuark: Thanks!
'Everyone is a moon and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody'-Mark Twain
Hermione was having a heart attack. Perhaps not literally but she felt as if she were having a heart attack. Edmund, Cho and herself were all perfectly fine and unhurt in a rather gleaming street in Diagon Alley. However Harry and Luna were no where to be seen. The three of them had waited at least fifteen minutes from the two of them to arrive where they were but to no prevail.
Hermione had never felt more horrible than she did now as she realized that Harry and Luna could be under seize of Ron and his Death Eaters. It would truely be all her fault if anything happened to them especially since it was her stupid idea to take Harry to a field trip to Hogwarts. How completely stupid of her!
Her heart was caught up in her throat and she couldn't think straight. Was there any way to get back to Hogwarts?
Cho was leaning against the wall of a shop and her nails were being bitten mercilessly. Edmund was pacing about in a rather annoying manner. Hermione resisted the urge to snap at him. Getting mad at each other was not the way to handle the situation. Edmund's bloody arm caught her eye. It was still slowly dripping blood. Her expression softened slightly.
"Edmund, your arm-it needs help," Hermione stated, getting Harry and Luna off her mind for a single second.
"It can wait," Edmund replied, gruffily, "Our priority is Luna and Harry right now."
Hermione bit her lip, "We should inform Headquarters. No point in going after them ourselves. It would only be a huge manslaughter in their favor."
"All too true," Cho agreed, "Hermione you should apparate there. Spread the message faster. Edmund and I will head to the Leaky Cauldron and floo from there."
Hermione nodded her head. And bid them farewell and most of all good luck. The Death Eaters would be out there perhaps looking for them as well. She gave the street they were on a second look. It read Jeckyle Street. She quickly apparated.
Panic was striking the Headquarters of the DA.
"You say he and Lovegood never arrived?" Draco demanded, eyesbrows raised.
He was probably the only one that wasn't going bonkers over the fact that Harry was desperately missing. In fact, he was rather calm and just sat there drumming his fingers on the wooden table.
"Yes!" Hermione cried out almost in annoyance.
She hated to seem him there, sitting so easily whilst the world around her seemed to crumble.
Draco nodded and mumbled a quiet, "Hmph" before he got up. Grabbing his robe he was almost halfway out the door when Bill called out to him.
"Where do you think you're going at a time like this?" he questioned, loudly.
"To him," Draco said, emphasizing the replacement of the Dark Lord's name.
No one made a word to contradict him and let him go. Perhaps when he returned he could bring good news with him. Hermione was rather unfazed and took the chair he had sat in. She didn't stop to cry and frankly she didn't quite feel like it. Her pain was more numbing and less raw emotion.
"Hermione, can you tell us how big the chance of his capture is at this moment?" Mrs. Weasley asked, her eyes obviously red.
Hermione didn't want to respond. The answer was almost too cruel to say to the soft, motherly heart of Mrs.Weasley right now.
"I'd say the odds are 70 to 30," Hermione replied.
Mrs. Weasley started to cry and Hermione could feel those butterflies in her stomach going wild. When she said 70 to 30 she was sugar-coating it a little bit. Truely the stakes were much higher than that.
"Who was the head Death Eater there?" Charlie inquired, "Was it that git, Nott?"
The butterflies were turning flesh-eating viruses which were sucking out her insides, "No, it was Ron."
"Well now I'm sure he won't give Harry a chance," Fred spoke with a certain resentment, "He won't spare Harry's life where he didn't even spare his sister's."
She wished with all her might that they could've avoided this awkward moment. The Weasley brothers stayed quiet and the noise made by Mrs. Weasley's sobbing increased considerably.
They were all interrupted in their sudden hustling and bustling about when the door opened. All heads were on the crack as it increased. Maybe just maybe Harry would be the one to walk through that door. But no. It was only the arrival of Cho and Edmund. The intial reaction was discouraging but soon Padma busied herself with Edmund's arm.
Cho had not much help to offer but glanced around the room and said, "Where's Malfoy? Can't he go check up on Harry even if the Dark Lord does have him?"
"He's already on his way," McGonagall said, straightening her glasses, "Now listen, we must act quick. Fred, George, you know your way around the Ministry very well. I need you to aide Draco in the search for Harry on the Dark Lord's turf. Cho, Hermione, return to Hogsmeade check all our usual stations and scan the village in general. Edmund and Padma may join you if he is up for it. Bill, Charlie, you must head towards Hogwarts search the grounds for any sign of the two of them. I will contact some of my associates and let them know of this even arising."
After she had finished everyone was rather awed by the way she could quickly take control of the most risky and hectic of all situations. Actually they stared at her for so long that she began quite fed up and snapped.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" she said, crossly, "Are you Dumbledore's Army or not?"
When Harry and Luna returned to the DA Headquarters they were slightly shocked to find no one there. Not a single person.
Luna stepped inside, her socked feet squishing the carpet beneath it. Harry followed and it was the strangest feeling to know that they had the whole house to themselves. This house always so lively and without people in it...it was rather frightening and overwhelming to tell the truth.
Yet...it was almost fascinating at the same time. This way Harry could actually take a proper look around the first floor of the house. He stood there for a while watching Luna looking at pictures on the mantel. After a while he chose to venture into the hall and poke around. It was all rather bland but he noticed many objects decorated with a snake design. It was rather odd. If he remembered well-and he had a feeling he did after the visit to Hogwarts-the slithering serpent was the symbol for Slytherin.
Harry disregarded this fact. What did it really matter? Anybody could have a snake fettish. he continued down the hall until something very perculiar caught his eye. A portrait of some kind with a curtain over it. As he got closer this curiosity grew, as did the feeling that he was about to do something he shouldn't. However, when he stood exactly vertical from this mysterious he couldn't help but feel his hand draw nearer to moving it apart. A few centimeters away his hand stopped mid-air; fingers frozen in a widespread position.
Without thinking a second longer he pushed it back and-
"FILTHY MUDBLOODS DISCRIMINATING THE HOUSE OF MY FOREFATHERS. BLEND OF THE KNOWING AND COMPLETELY IDIOTIC! CHILDREN OF FILTH! AND THE DIM-WITTED MAGICAL CREATURES THAT ACCEPT THESE UNTOLERABLE CREATURES! BESMIRCHING THE MOST NOBLE HOUSE OF BLACK! HOW DARE THEY STEP INTO MY PRESENCE! HOW DARE THEY BREATH THE AIR OF THE PUREBLOODED ONES!"
She just kept yelling. And by 'she' he meant the witch in the picture who was rather old and wearing ragged clothing. Harry was just preparing to die of shame, fright and confusion when Luna hurried out of the living room and quickly shut the curtains once again. The shouting continued but it was much more muffled now. Harry gulped and backed up into the wall.
Luna sighed and, to Harry's great surprise, smiled, "Well that was rather nerve-racking. How about we treat ourselves to some hot chocolate?"
Harry blinked and consented. After his last act of unveiling that-that-monster, he had been quite sure a hearty scolding was coming his way but luckily Luna let him off the hook quite unceremoniously. She led him into the kitchen which was a large, rather welcoming room. He sat gingerly in a chair while Luna prepared the hot chocolate.
"Luna, if you don't mind me asking, but who was that?" Harry implored, placing his hands on the table.
"That, Harry, was Mrs. Black," Luna responded, setting the milk to boil.
Harry instantly remembered the name Black from that family tree he had read in the house earlier. What was the connection between the Blacks and this house-or the DA for that matter? He asked Luna the very same and waited for a response.
Luna was not quite paying attention and only added chocolate to the milk and watched it melt slowly. Harry had to repeat the question for her to notice he had said anything at all.
"Oh, well, the Blacks used to own this house," Luna explained, "Listen would you like to see some pictures of your Hogwarts years?"
Harry was quite taken aback by the question but eventually agreed.
Luna took the hot chocolate off the stove and poured a respective cup for Harry and herself. After adding a few marshmellows to each she handed a cup to Harry. The remaining cup found its way into her hand and she started to head back to the living room. Harry took this as a sign that the pictures were in there.
Luna picked up a photo album laying on the mantel amongst the other pictures and settled down into the couch. Harry joined her and watched the pages intently as Luna began to turn them. There were many pictures. Every single one of Harry, Hermione and Ron.
Harry stopped Luna on a page where he noticed one of just him and Ron. They were play fighting because Ron was laughing and pushing Harry's head away from his own and Harry had Ron's tie in his hand. Eyes alight, they each looked like they would rather be there with each other then anywhere else in the world.
It was so odd to imagine that tall, gangly, forever-smiling redhead to be the cold, tight-lipped, pale-faced Death Eater Harry had seen today. What could have happened to seperate them, best mates, for all their adult lives?
"When do you think you'll find him?" Luna asked, sipping her hot chocolate.
"Find who?" Harry answered with a question.
"Ron, the real Ron," Luna clarified.
"The real Ron?" Harry repeated, eyebrows raised high, "I don't know."
That really is the question, wasn't it? Where is the real Ron?
Draco arrived at the Ministry and headed staright to the Dark Lord's quarters. It was no point in questioning simple Death Eaters of Harry Potter. What most of them would say would only be silly rumors anyways and Draco needed answers.
If he were to speak no falsehood he would have to admitt he did not enjoy Harry Potter at all. In fact he had always despised him. He took up too much of the DA's time and too much was placed on his shoulders. I mean, it's annoying when people expect too much of one person. Really he was almost sort of jealous of Potter. Why couldn't Draco be the one with the power to destroy the Dark Lord? Why was it, that even if we wanted to kill the Dark Lord and save all he cared for from utter destruction that he couldn't? Why did he always have to wait for Potter?
It reminded him of that time in Potions when he'd been forced to be Potter's partner. Always waiting for him to hurry up and get things done, always knowing that he could've worked more efficiently without Potter's weight to lug around.
As soon as he reached the Dark Lord's door, he quickly cleared his mind. He was very talented at Occulmency. Maybe as good as the Dark Lord was at Legilimacy. As soon as his mind was blank he began to turn the knob and was entered the Dark Lord's chambers.
He was in his throne, as always, with Nagini curled in his lap. He greeted his master.
"My Lord," Draco said, stiffly.
"Malfoy Jr., what a pleasure to actually see you here," Voldemort said, with a slight venom, "Don't fret Malfoy, I will not punish you. You are loyal, I trust and have never failed me yet."
Draco bowed, "Thank you sire."
"Now what do I do this visit to?" Voldemort asked, rubbing Nagini under the head.
"Well, my Lord, I have been hearing rumors a plenty about your capture of Harry Potter," Draco said, truthfully, "But I would like your verification of this joyous occasion."
As soon as he said this he almost wished he hadn't because Voldemort gave him a look so piercing that he felt his Occulmency might quail under the sheer power. After two straining minutes Voldemort relaxed and began petting his snake once again. Draco was extremely relieved and almost celebrated over the Dark Lord's small weakness. He thought too much of himself. If he could not find out anything from Draco's mind in two minutes then that must mean there was nothing there. Simple as that.
"I am sorry to say that we have not captured Harry Potter," Voldemort replied, face darkened, "But I would like you to join Weasley in the hunt for him. How about it?"
"Of course, sire," Draco answered, immediately.
There was no denying the Dark Lord and even if he were on the hunt he could always trail them off Harry's back.
"You please me, Malfoy," Voldemort commented and before Draco could say 'Thank you, my Lord' he Voldemor added, "And let's keep it that way. So you are dismissed."
Draco took no time in leaving the room. He was quick, reliable and good at taking orders. Of course it really depended on who was giving the orders. If it were to be someone he respected or feared like McGonagall or the Dark Lord then it was done aptly. But if it was someone more like Granger or Weasley, the job would never get done in the exact way directed.
As he shut the door he was disrupted when he felt eyes on the back of his neck. He turned and saw Weasley standing there smiling rather wickedly.
"Sucking up to daddy's good friend once again, Malfoy?" Weasley joked, sourly.
"Why? Are you jealous that the Dark Lord has a new favourite, Weasley?" Draco shot back.
He began walking down the hall and Weasley accompanied him. Truely among these walls they were the best of friends to all. However, in general they had a rather icy relationship and Draco detested him for his treatment of Harry and the grand betrayal. However Draco was one to talk since he was still betraying everyone present in this building as he was actually a secret agent for the DA.
"How can you possibly be his favourite when you're not even here half the time," Weasley said, nodding at a fellow Death Eater walking past.
"Well you see, Weasley, when I get tasks I actually return successful," Draco replied, pushing back his hair.
"You talk the talk, Malfoy, but can you walk the walk," Weasley demanded, a smooth eyebrow raised.
" 'Course I can," Draco responded, "If I were so horrible at completing tasks how come the Dark Lord added me to yours since you can't quite seemed to control it all on your lonesome self?"
Weasley stopped walking and stood there for a second letting this information sink in. His ears became extremely red and he stomped off in the opposite direction. Draco grinned. Malfoy one. Weasley zero.
He took two glances around the hall before slinking into the room near him. It was dark and dusty but, fortunately, unused. He reached a dirty window and knocked the tune of a popular Weird Sisters song on it. He had only to wait three seconds before it was returned. Draco opened the window, quietly and greeted Fred and George.
"So any sign of Harry?" George asked, keeping low.
"Nope, he's not caught," Draco clarified, "I suggest you get back to Headquarters which is probably where Harry is by now. If you were caught or even in possession of someone dangerous the Dark Lord would know by now."
"Good, good," Fred grinned, "So what're you waiting for?"
"I'm planning to stick around here for a little bit longer or else the Dark Lord gets suspicious. Actually he assigned a task to me to keep me here more often," Draco admitted.
"I see, what's this task you talk of?" George questioned, rubbing his neck.
"Well I'm now to help-and here Draco made air quotes which was very unlike him-your dear old brother to get Harry," Draco repeated, teasingly.
Fred and George shared a chuckle. However, Draco overheard a rustle nearby and the hairs on the back of his neck stood up.
"Get out of here now! I think someone's coming!" Draco whispered, furiously, but then he saw the twins hesitate, "Don't worry about me! Now, go!"
He shut the window and the twins disappeared out of sight. He quickly rushed out of the room, his face tinged with pink. Luckily, the rustling had only been Dieke trying to open the curtains. As soon as Draco came out of the usually abandoned room Dieke stared at him in surprise.
"What're you looking at?" Draco snapped.
Dieke looked away, promptly and began fixing his concentration on the curtains once again.
"Don't do that," Draco said, walking down the hall, "I like it dark."
A/N: I hope you read and review and like it too! Hey I rhymed!
xo. winky-wink