Hi everyone! I am about to do what few have done be fore: beg. I would love for the story to break the 200 review mark before it ends and seeing as the # of chapters left is getting progressively lower, I figured I'd give you all a heads up and BEG and PLEAD for your reviews. I'm even making a sad puppy face on this side of the screen, which I'm sure would melt all your little hearts into reviewing had you the chance to see it. So, like always, Enjoy! and if you do, please review. D (Even if you don't, review anyway and tell me so!)

Chapter 28:

---

Hermione's Point of View:

---

In all her studies of war and men, it had never occurred to Hermione Granger that she would find herself at the other end of the spectrum, where countless women before her had stood as they waited for their loved ones to return home from battle. It was indeed a measure of strength, beyond that which any physical exchange can ever produce, for in this waiting game of wills the women fought their worst fears as they replayed themselves night after night through an endless series of nightmares than shook them far more than whatever realities their male counterparts might have actually faced. It was this uncertainty, which intrinsically terrifies all human beings, muggle and wizard alike, which slowly became Hermione's closest companion during her Winter Holidays.

Five more, no six more days, she counted out as she crossed out another box from the calendar besides her bed. Her Christmas gifts lay forgotten by her bedside, all her attention focused on the ever slow passage of time. And even as she longed for the fated day to arrive, to see if he would indeed return at the start of their last term, the feeling came inevitably accompanied by an equally pressing hope that such a day would never arrive. For if it did, it would no longer be possible to allow herself to believe that all might indeed be well. Because if he did not emerge from the Hogwarts Express as she hoped, all that awaited her was a lifetime of uncertainty about the boy who had walked into her life, turned it on itself, and walked out never to be seen again.

Where are you, Draco Malfoy?, she wondered for the thousands time, wondering if she would ever truly know.

---

Six Days Later

---

As each student filed out from the Hogwarts Express, Hermione seemed to be the only one to notice the trademark striking blond locks missing from the mass of Slytherins. She waited, a practice that had become almost second nature in the month gone by, her eyes darting back and forth every time a new Slytherin badge popped out of the train's entrance. And even as the flow of students began trickling down, she still stood there, waiting as though time had stopped, waiting for her friend.

Soon, she told herself, her hands gripping at her robes in anticipation of seeing him again.

Soon, she reiterated to herself, as the mass began to die down to no more than a two students at any one time.

Soon, she forced herself to believe, as the last of the officers of the train unboarded, looking around for any new passengers before heading back inside the cabin. It wasn't until the train had left the station than she knew that he would not be returning. And for the first time in her life, Hermione Granger learned the true meaning of loss.

---

---

She wasn't sure how long she waited by the empty railroad tracks of the Hogsmead station. She just stood there, time a thing of the past, waiting as though the train could turn back at any moment to explain the misunderstanding and then Draco Malfoy would return. She could feel Ginny shaking her, trying to snap some sense into her, and she distantly acknowledged the equally lost figure of Zabini who looked broken and cold. It was at some point during all this that, though her mind never consciously understood the events that had transpired, she concluded that she was done waiting. Without further warning, she turned away from her worried best friend and began to jog back to campus straight set on getting an answer.

"I had a feeling I would be seeing you today, Miss. Granger" acknowledged Dumbledore as she stormed unceremoniously into his office, ignoring the rather startled Ginny she had conveniently locked outside upon entering. "Please, take a seat" he added, crinkling his forehead in thought, his eyes infinitely older than she remembered. This is the cost of war, she thought numbly as she stared at the worn man before her. She just wondered how much more any of them could take.

"Where is he?" she asked, not even bothering to explain more than that. In turn, the old man let out a deep sigh filled with an immeasurable sadness that seemed all too far from his normal muggle-pastry-loving self.

"Mr. Malfoy will not be rejoining us at Hogwarts" he finally answered, his voice heavy and frail. "I believe you would be proud to hear that before he left the train for home, he saw it fit to bestow upon me an invaluable amount of information on Voldemort's movements". Her eyes widened at his words.

"What happened?" she managed, her voice barely above a whisper. Knowing he had entered the Malfoy Manor as a traitor who'd aided the Order was doing little for her nerves.

"That, I cannot answer" he replied. "But I can give you a choice" With a graceful gesture, he pulled out something from his robe's pocket and, opening his aged fingers slowly, revealed the smallest little bauble of shining silver liquid she quickly identified as a miniature pensieve. "It all comes down to choice, Miss. Granger. No one would fault you for looking away. But because you have asked, here's your answer. Whether you choose to see it or not is entirely up to you" He stood up from his desk, leaving the trinket behind. "I'll give you some privacy. Feel free to make use of my office for as long as you need. I'll be outside should you require anything". With that, he patted her softly on the shoulder and left. But at that point, she knew there was no choice. The choice had been made the moment she had dared breach the cold facade of one Draco Malfoy. So upon hearing the door close behind Dumbledore, she immediately extended her hand and took the pensieve before her, and thus the memory unraveled.

Though she had never been there before, the startling image of the impressive Malfoy Manor was all too easy to recognize. The silver trims of every carving besides Slytherin green engravings formed an infinite number of Malfoy crests on the building walls. It was a place of history, the household of an old and proud family that had all but lost its dignity under the rule of its present holder. The memory swerved over the mansion, landing near a single empty window, pushing through and into the confinements of the building. However, she forgot that this was indeed nothing more than a vision as she heard one terrifyingly familiar voice scream.

It was hard to contain the burst of rage that exploded within her at the pain filled sounds of his voice. The memory took her closer to the screaming, and she longed to make it move faster so she could reach him. Eventually, it came to a painful stop before the last doorway, the sounds unbearably loud beyond it. In her field of vision came forth the aged hand she recognized as Dumbledore's, his elegant fingers making a few graceful gestures as they played with the wooden door before him. Almost instantly, the door gave way to another vision, one that let the viewer see what lay beyond the wooden frame. Unable to turn her eyes away despite what she knew would be there, she stared on.

The room was pitch black and it took her eyes a few moments to adjust. Occasionally, a spark of yellow light would flash against the floor and stop again. Figures of men stood in a circle, glistening eyes bright with excitement, as they stared at their master, the tall figure at the end of the room, whose eyes shot blood red. She didn't need to have ever seen him before to know who he was and the thought of standing but a door's distance away from Lord Voldemort, even if only through a memory, was chilling. But not half as terrifying as the blood curling screams that erupted once more, begging for mercy, as the yellow light enveloped his twitching body on the floor of the room. Another whispered -crucio- and he was at it again, and all around him the men laughed.

"Son, this is your destiny. Embrace it" Said a tall blond man who stood at Voldemort's right, his blue eyes a disgusting reflection of his pained son's blues. "You have lasted so much, and yet we know your heart does not lie with the Order. Let your pride go and accept your Lord as your Master". The yellow light started up again, and she recognized that it sprung forth at him from his very own father's wand. 'So this is how you break a man', she thought to herself. 'So this is how you make a Death Eater'. She struggled against the memory that held her where she stood, wanting to interfere, make it stop. She even screamed, and though her voice rang true in her mind, it fell on deaf ears by those present.

The torture didn't continue for long as Lord Voldemort called for a respite. He then plucked Malfoy's chin up with his fingers, kissing him on the forehead.

"Soon you will break" he promised, his hand caressing the boy's cheek, and making him shiver with repulsion. It only served to make the Dark Lord laugh. "You will either break or you will die" But as he held him there, the blue orbs she had grown to love stared up for a moment, making contact with her own eyes. He knows I'm here, she realized numbly, knowing the recognition in his eyes extended beyond that which he would allow for only Dumbledore. And though she grasped at that one moment for all it as worth, almost as if one cue, another barrage of attacks started once more. And as much as Draco's screams tore at her with a ferocity that left her feeling battered and weak, nothing could compare to the heart piercing feeling of hearing them stop. There, in the midst of the men he had betrayed, before a father he had never loved, but a door's reach away from salvation, lay the unmoving body of her friend, Draco Malfoy.

She returned to herself, finding herself in Dumbledore's Office once more. She felt the tears she had bottled up break loose, and she clutched her knees to herself as she rocked back and forth, weeping. He was gone, and all that was left was a deep sense of emptiness and silence.

Author's Note: Read and Review and I will update soon! D