A/n: Woohoo, an update. And under five years. : ) I'm alive and have a break from school. Go weekends! Anyway, I've been big with the cliffhangers lately. What's up with that? Well, read and review.

Thanks reviewers for staying with me although I'm not updating as much. Thanks phabandphat and Kurama'sfoxykitsune. You guys rule.

Hate's Just a Word

Chapter SEVENTEEN: Stuck with Malfoy

Lindsay slowly came to. She opened her eyes and everything was blurry. She rubbed them and looked around. She was lying on a cold stone floor. She sat up and looked around. Where the hell am I? She realized she was in a cell of some kind. There were black bars and she was apparently locked in. The next thing she did was look for her wand. It was lying beside her on the floor. She picked it up and slowly stood up. She looked around. Well, she seemed to be in a cell. Outside the cell, there was a staircase. There was very little light where she was, and it was kind of murky.

"A basement… I'm in a basement…" She said to herself. She looked down at herself for any injuries, but she found that she was not wearing the same clothes as before. She was wearing a pair of jeans. She bent down and examined them closely. Above one of the pockets, there was writing sewn in that read For Wizards By Wizards. She wondered how she came to be wearing jeans for wizards when she owned not a single pair. She was wearing a white button-down shirt and a gray vest over it, much like her school uniform. The thing was there was no sign of the Gryffindor emblem. There wasn't even a Hogwarts emblem. These weren't her clothes and she didn't know why she was wearing them.

Lindsay suddenly felt very uncomfortable. She wasn't in Hogwarts anymore. She didn't know where the hell she was. Luckily, she could Apparate. She didn't have her license for her birthday seventeenth birthday wasn't for a week, but she figured it was okay since it was an emergency. She closed her eyes and concentrated hard. Nothing happened. She tried over and over again. Nothing, again and again.

"Great, I'm in one of those places where I can't Apparate or Disapparate," She muttered to herself. "I should at least get out of the cell."

She touched the cold, black bars and shook them. They seemed to be ordinary bars. She took out her wand and pointed them at the lock.

"Alohamora."

She didn't know if it worked. She stood back and kicked the bars. The cell door flew open. She chuckled to herself. "The world's worst cell…"

She continued to hold out her wand and headed up the stairs. The last thing she remembered was being stunned. That meant that a Death Eater probably stunned her, and she had probably been taken prisoner or something along the lines of that. But there was no one in sight. She opened the basement door, and stepped out. She was suddenly in a house. Well, it seemed to be more than a house. She stood in a long hallway. She saw the colors of green, silver, and black splashed through the hallway. 'Yep…Death Eater. Proud Slytherin…' She walked down the hallway, and ended up in what seemed to be a living room or something like that. She looked around. No one was in sight. Where was she and where was the exit to this place? She realized she needed to find a window. If she could find a window she might be able to find out where she was. She walked through the living room area into another area. It had a few bookshelves. She walked toward the shelves. They were filled with dust. She pocketed her wand. She took one of the black, hard cover books from the shelve and held it in her hands. She blew off the dust and looked at the title. It was titled Slytherin followed by some other words she didn't understand. She soon realized it was in Latin. She put the book back, and looked around. It was pretty dusty and dark, and it looked as if no one had been here in years.

She continued on, and found a room with a staircase. She climbed the staircase, hoping to find a room with a window. At the top, was a long hallway. Once again, she was walking down a hallway. At the end, though, she could see light. She rushed towards the light. The hallway ended at an empty room, except for a window. She walked over to the window and looked out of it. It was obviously daylight. The sun was high, and it was probably around noontime. She looked around. She could see a very small town off in the far distance. She was apparently in a mansion of some sort. Outside the house, were an extensive yard and garden, and about a million and one fences. Off in the distance, where the property ended, there was a huge wall surrounding the mansion and its yards of land.

"This is one rich Death Eater," Lindsay said, aloud to herself.

"You could say that," A very cold voice said from behind her. She jumped, and spun around. Standing just a few feet in front of her was Lucius Malfoy, pointing his wand at her. She stared at him. Maybe she could apparate out of here. Yet, could she risk it? He could kill her in a second if he wanted to. "You. What are you doing here?"

She stared, and forced herself to answer, calmly. "I don't know… I just woke up and I was in the basement."

"In the dungeons?" He asked. His wand seemed to be more and more threatening. Lucius Malfoy was bigger than her and more powerful than her. She wouldn't be able to whip out her wand in time to curse him. He had her at his mercy.

"Yes," She replied, quietly. "I was in a cage."

"Oh, and you escaped? Mudbloods and half-bloods are not able to withstand that cage. It's supposed to hurt them slowly and surely," Lucius said.

"I'm not either," Lindsay said, trying to keep her voice steady.

"Aha," He said. "So, what is your name, girl?"

She couldn't exactly lie to him, could she? She couldn't let him know that she was a Richmond, but he had gone to school with her family. He would know the name Caldwell. She had no choice but to answer.

"Lindsay Caldwell," She replied, quietly.

"Hmm…" Lucius thought aloud to himself. "I don't recall that as a pureblood name."

He then looked her over. He was studying her, and she did not like it at all. If only there was a way to escape. A way to live…

"Hmm, you look somewhat familiar," He said to her. Suddenly, his eyes lit up with recognition. "Do you know who I am, girl?"

"Lucius Malfoy," She replied.

"And do you know where you are?"

"Well, in a room, cornered by Lucius Malfoy and quite defenseless."

"It's actually quite amusing and ironic," Lucius said. "I've got the only daughter of the traitorous Richmond family at my wrath. You look just like your father."

'Wonderful,' Lindsay thought. 'I resemble a death eater…'

"Do you know who killed your family?"

"Yes, sir," She replied. "You did."

"Ah, yes, that I did," Lucius said, proudly. "And I am moments away from killing you."

Her heart rate rose drastically and she needed to find a way to keep him talking and keep her living.

"So, did you come here for revenge?" Lucius asked. "I mean, I was in Azkaban, but the Dark Lord finally freed us. Did you decide to wait here and try and kill me to avenge your traitorous family?"

She could stand up to him. She could be like Harry Potter and stand up to him, but she was not quite as lucky. She would not stand up to him and survive. There was only thing to do. Lie.

"No," Lindsay said. "I wasn't sure who I would meet here, but I am glad to have met you. You see, for the longest time, I've been wanting to thank you."

He stared, taken aback. She couldn't believe how smoothly her lie was coming out. It was coming from the top of her head, but it sounded so natural.

"You've done a lot for the Dark Lord's cause, including killing all those muggles and mudbloods," She continued on. "You killed my traitorous family. I can't stand to think about it. Imagine if I was raised by those…those blood-traitors… I would have been just as bad. I'm ashamed to have the Richmond name, and so I changed it. And I wanted to thank you for killing them so I wouldn't be part of the family of blood-traitors."

She knew Lucius Malfoy to be very vain, and he was obviously enjoying the compliments.

"Ah, yes," He said, with satisfaction. "But you still are a Richmond."

"Not anymore. Not since the day you killed them and not me."

"That's right. I remember now. I spared you," Lucius said. "I wanted the last of the Richmonds to have a terrible life."

Lindsay didn't say anything. Her life had actually been better, but she wasn't going to tell him that.

"You seem to be more promising than your family, so I will wait a few more minutes before I kill you," He said. She remained silent. "Are you a Slytherin?"

"Of course," She replied, although she was far from that. He would probably kill her if he found out she was a Gryffindor. It was all about survival and she was determined to stay alive. She was quite glad that her vest did not have the Gryffindor emblem. She held out her left hand and showed him the ring that resembled the Slytherin one. She was also quite glad she decided to keep it on.

"Ah, I see," He said, looking at her hand. He looked back at her. "You know my son, then?"

"Yes, I know Draco," Lindsay said.

"How is my son doing? I haven't seen him in so long," Lucius said. Lindsay hesitated for a second.

"He's quite well off. He's grown more handsome this year, and I can see where he got his looks," She said. Lucius smiled, pleased with that comment. She tried not to roll her eyes. 'Jeez…' She continued on. "He's also a Death Eater now."

Lucius narrowed his eyes and gave her a look full of disbelief. "Draco is a Death Eater? He's too young for that."

"He has the Dark Mark," Lindsay said. "I've seen it. The Dark Lord gave him some kind of mission. I think he succeeded. There were Death Eaters in the school last night, but I do not know what happened. I woke up here."

"Dark Mark? Mission? What was this mission?"

"He never said to anyone," Lindsay replied. Lucius looked surprised with this news, but also very pleased.

"But Death Eaters in the school? Draco's not as stupid as I thought he was," Lucius said. He looked at Lindsay. "I will let you live a little while longer. Do not try to escape. I will kill you before you even get a chance."

"Okay," Lindsay replied.

"Follow me."

She followed Lucius through the hallway. He had his back turned. Now would be the perfect time to attack him, but she couldn't do. She didn't want to risk it. She had just lied about everything to keep living. She changed all of her beliefs in a second to survive. She knew that a lot of other people would died defending what they believed it. She was just another cowardly Slytherin. Lindsay wasn't going let her life go to waste. She was going to find out as much as she could about Lucius Malfoy and Voldemort. When she did, she would tell Harry Potter and Dumbledore. She might as well make herself useful while she was in midst of the enemy.

They were back in the living room area. Lucius motioned for her to sit down in one of the chairs. She did so.

"I am going to contact Narcissa," He said. "You stay here."

"Er, sir, don't you think the Aurors would look for you here?" Lindsay asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

"No. This is not the Malfoy Manor. This is my second residence. The Aurors do not know about this place," Lucius replied. She gave a nod and he walked away. 'Great…I'm stuck here.' She looked around at all of the green, silver, and black. There had to be a way out here. She couldn't Apparate. Or, could she? How did Lucius Malfoy appear out of nowhere from behind her? She would be sure to try, but not now. He might come back at any second. He did come back about a minute later.

"Narcissa will be arriving soon," Lucius announced. Lindsay refrained from rolling her eyes. 'Great…two of them.' She hoped that 'Narcissa' would be just as stupid as Lucius and fall for her lies. Lucius sat down in one of the chairs across from her. "So, I am quite interested to hear what Draco has been doing. Are you a good friend of his?"

"You could say that," She replied. If only he knew. It would probably be unwise to tell him anything close to that. She remembered Draco said that his father would flip if he found he was dating the daughter of the blood-traitor Richmonds.

"What has he been up to at that school?"

Lindsay decided it would be best if she left out the part when Draco was crying. It would also be best to leave out that he's been slacking in everything, and didn't even bother with quidditch anymore.

"Just the usual I suppose. He's very well," She finally replied. Draco hadn't been very well at all and that was just a lie.

"Death Eaters in the school…" Lucius said, quietly to himself. He looked back at Lindsay. "Do you think he's killed Potter?"

She desperately hoped that they wouldn't talk about Harry Potter. The last thing she wanted to do was insult Harry Potter for appearances, but she was kind of hoping to live.

"Oh, I hope so. I can't stand him. Everyone loves him because he's the boy-who-lived. He's the reason that mudbloods and muggles are still around. He stopped the Dark Lord's work. He's Dumbledore's favorite boy… there's another joke… Dumbledore…"

Lucius's eyes glowed. He was quite pleased with the answer. She repeated everything she heard from Draco in the past. He used to say those things, usually after a 'My father said…' It was like Lucius's words coming from her mouth. She, on the other hand, felt like she could throw up. She felt terrible for insulting them.

"You are quite different than your traitorous family," Lucius observed. She put an evil smile on her face, not dissimilar to his. She was quite different from her family, but not in the way he thought she was. She wasn't comfortable being in a huge mansion she couldn't escape out of, alone with an evil Death Eater. She suddenly felt very restless and all she wanted to do was leave. Suddenly, there was a small 'pop' sound and Narcissa Malfoy appeared in the living room, using what looked like Apparition. Lindsay gained hope. She could apparate out of here.

"Oh, Lucius," Narcissa said, once she saw him. She threw her arms around her husband, who looked calm and collected.

"Narcissa, dear, we have company," Lucius said to her. Narcissa followed Lucius's gaze and set her eyes upon Lindsay. She separated from her husband and stared at the girl.

"Who is this?" Narcissa asked, coldly. She glared at the girl who came between her and her husband.

"The only daughter of the Richmonds," Lucius replied with a smirk. Narcissa gaped in horror.

"Why haven't you killed her yet?" Narcissa shrieked. Lindsay just stared, silently. 'Unbelievable! What is it with everyone and wanting me dead?'

"She interests me, greatly. I would like to keep her around a little while longer. She may be useful," Lucius said. Narcissa glared at Lindsay, but didn't question her husband. Lindsay was feeling quite apprehensive. Everyone wanted her dead… "Now, sit down, dear. Please, tell me what has happened. I missed a lot."

"Dumbledore's dead," Narcissa said. Lindsay's heart stopped. Dumbledore dead? Impossible. He was the most powerful wizard ever. He was great. How did he die? It couldn't possibly be because of…

"Dumbledore dead! It's about time!" Lucius exclaimed, happily. "Did Draco…?"

"He was supposed to," Narcissa said. "Severus did."

Lindsay stared in horror. Snape killed Dumbledore! The very thought of Professor Dumbledore's death was mind numbing. It couldn't be possible, but even more impossible was that Snape killed him. She never liked Snape and Snape never liked her. She sometimes thought him as evil, but never the kind of 'I'm working for the Dark Lord' evil. Well, she did suspect him after Draco mentioned his name, but if he was bad then Dumbledore wouldn't have let him teach. He killed Dumbledore. She felt like everything was falling apart. Lucius looked at her, waiting for her reaction.

"Finally," She said, coldly. "We're rid of that horrible man. Tell me, did the Death Eaters overrun the school?"

Narcissa looked shocked. She did not expect Lindsay to be just like her family. She seemed pleased, though. "Unfortunately, Dumbledore's order people fought off the Death Eaters and they had to escape and leave the castle."

Lindsay let out a mental sigh of relief. Hogwarts was still okay.

"What of Severus and Draco?" Lucius asked. Narcissa turned and looked at her husband.

"They're with the Dark Lord…" She said, very quietly. She suddenly burst into tears and threw herself on Lucius. "Oh, what if He thinks that Draco failed? He's going to kill Draco!"

"Now dear, Severus is with him. Severus will convince the Dark Lord that Draco should live," Lucius said, as he patted his wife on the back. Lindsay was still in shock. Dumbledore couldn't be dead. It seemed so surreal. If he was dead, there was no way the good side could win. Harry Potter… was Harry still alive? She doubted Narcissa knew so she did not say anything. Everyone was silent except for the weeping of Narcissa.

"Now, dear, please tell me, what was Draco's mission?" Lucius asked.

"All of it?" She asked, as she sniffed.

"Of course," He said. Lindsay listened intently. She was interested in hearing this.

"But…but the Dark Lord said—"

"Draco is my son."

"Oh, alright, but…" Narcissa looked over at Lindsay.

"Very well," Lucius said. He looked at Lindsay. "We will be back shortly. Do not move."

The two of them disappeared into another room. Lindsay let out a loud sigh. Dumbledore was dead…there would be no more Hogwarts after this. Was anyone else dead? Would Draco die? Being with his family made Lindsay despise Draco Malfoy, but she still had feelings for him. Those feelings would never leave her. She had accepted them, and even cherished them, but now she started to hate having them. She was trying not to judge him by his parents, but he respected them so much, especially his father. She couldn't stand Lucius Malfoy. Why would Draco want to be anything like that man? She would be able to escape soon and go back to Hogwarts, or go home. She didn't want to be here.

She tried hard to listen to what they were talking about. She heard nothing. She waited in that living room that she was coming to hate. She was wondering what was talking them. They hadn't come back yet and she doubted that it would take that long to talk. Maybe she could apparate, rather disapparate now. She didn't want to risk it. She was afraid that they would come back and kill her. The two did come back, and Narcissa looked relatively happier.

"Good news, Lindsay, m'dear," Lucius said, happily. "The Dark Lord spared Draco's life. He will be coming shortly."

She let out a sigh of relief. Draco was alive. Wait, he was coming here? He was with Snape. If Snape came, she would be exposed and then killed.

"Is he coming with Professor Snape?" Lindsay asked.

"No, Severus has other things to do at this moment. Bellatrix is bringing him," Lucius said to her. "You might want to make a good impression on her. Even I cannot control her sometimes…"

Lindsay gave a slight nod. This was going to be quite awkward. What would Draco do when he saw her? Would he expose her for what she really was? Death seemed to be around every corner, and she didn't even know how she got here in the first place. She wanted to leave more than anything at the moment, but the thing that was bugging her the most was the fact that she was still alive. Why hadn't Lucius Malfoy killed her yet? For what purpose was he keeping her alive for? So, what, they shared the same beliefs. Her family is still a family of blood traitors. He should have killed her sixteen years ago, and he passed up his chance to do it again. Lucius Malfoy was quite strange.

Suddenly, two pops were heard from the other room. Narcissa and Lucius rushed forward. Lindsay stood up, but stayed in the living room. She heard the commotion loud and clear.

"Oh, Draco! You're alright!"

"Yes, mother," He replied, timidly, and slightly annoyed. Lindsay's heart began beating fast again, although that never really stopped. That was his voice. The group moved into the living room. As Draco entered and his eyes set upon Lindsay, he froze. His eyes widened and he gawked as if it were Hagrid in his living room. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Lindsay…" He said, quietly. "Is that you?"