A/N: Here's a faster update than last time! Thanks to everyone who responded with reviews. And thanks to Jocelyn, who took some time out of her horrendously busy schedule to beta this quickly, because I begged. That's my girl!

Chapter Eighteen

"Hello, Father," he said.

Hermione put her fist to her mouth to stifle a gasp. Lucius Malfoy… and now he had access to Draco.

"Draco, my son." Lucius's voice was rough with emotion. "You are all I have left. They have hidden you well, hidden you from me. But now, I am asking you to come out of hiding and join me. Stand at my side again."

Hermione watched the play of emotions across Draco's face and held her breath.

"To what purpose, Father? The Dark Lord has already condemned me. You can't save me from him."

"There is a way. When I stood high in his favor, the Dark Lord honored me with a commission. He gave me an object to secure for him. Now, he wishes it returned, and that is how I intend to obtain a pardon for you. You will bring it back to the Dark Lord and he will reward you."

Draco's head was bowed over the bowl, his blonde hair falling over his eyes. "Where is this object I must find, Father?"

"It is hidden in my special vault within the Manor. You must get it as soon as possible, and then return to me."

"The Manor is under the control of the Or… of our enemies. I won't be able to get in there."

Lucius dropped his voice. "There are ways into the Manor of which they will be unaware. You can easily get in there unseen. Use your head… once you are safely inside, you will know how to hide, how to avoid anyone else."

"They will know that I've gone from here."

"Then come up with a reason. Manipulate them! You are well able to do it."

"And I am to smuggle this object out? How large is it? Can I conceal it on my person?"

"It will fit in a pocket of your cloak. It is a cup… not very large at all."

Hermione had both hands over her mouth now. She saw Draco start to turn in her direction, then catch himself. Ask him what it is and why Voldemort wants it! She concentrated, willing him to catch her thought.

"What could be so important about a cup to the Dark Lord, Father?"

"He never deigned to share that knowledge with me. The cup is from one of the four founders of Hogwarts. Perhaps it holds the key to his taking the castle."

She felt faint. The Cup! They knew where to look for it now. Unless… she watched Draco anxiously. What if he chose to go back to his father? The Order would have to stop him, maybe even kill him. Her heart was pounding so hard that she feared Lucius would hear it.

Draco hadn't said anything for a long moment. "I can't believe that the Dark Lord would let me live for the sake of a cup. Why should I take the chance? Wouldn't it be better for us if I stayed in hiding?"

"Listen to me!" Lucius's voice rose to a snarl. "We must ensure that the Malfoy line survives. That will happen only if you are reconciled to our Master. Believe me when I say this, Draco… he will not be defeated!"

Draco said nothing. Hermione continued to watch him, holding her breath.

"Draco!"

"I'll do it tonight, Father. I'll contact you as soon as I've gotten the Cup."

"I knew that you would not fail me, son. You are a true Malfoy."

The glow around the scrying bowl faded away, and the silverwork resumed its normal appearance. With a muttered oath, Draco shoved the bowl across the table, away from him, and dropped his face into his hands.

Hermione hurried over to him. He didn't look at her. She pulled up the chair next to him and sat down, putting her arm around his shoulders.

"Are you all right?"

He shook his head. He said nothing for a moment. When he did speak, his voice was shaky.

"How can he continue to serve him… after what he did to my mother? And he expects me to… Voldemort will kill us both! Why doesn't he see it?"

Hermione tightened her hold on him. "Maybe he really is mad. But, oh Draco! We know where it is! We can get it and destroy it, and then Voldemort will really be weakened."

"I suppose we'd better tell Potter and Weasley about this. Do you want to bring them here?"

Hermione nodded. "I'll round them up, and we can have a council of war." She stood up, and looked at him with concern. "Are you going to be okay alone for a little bit?"

"Granger… I do not need a Gryffindor minder. Go fetch your friends." He smirked at her, still pale, but looking more like himself.

Impulsively, she reached over and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll be right back."

This time, he grinned and touched his cheek. "You should do that in front of Snape next time."

That brought her up short. "In front of… why, for heaven's sake?"

"Because he told me not to get involved with you."

She practically shrieked it at him. "He told you what?"

"Yeah. Warned me off you."

She sat down again with a thump. "Draco, he told me the same thing! Not to get involved with you. What is he playing at?"

He gave her a funny look. "Don't you know? He's jealous, Granger."

She flushed. "That… that can't possibly be why."

Draco smiled. "Oh, it's why, all right. Think about it. And go get the others while you're thinking."

Hermione walked over to the Floo and grabbed a handful of powder. Jealous? She realized that her mouth was hanging open, and she shut it with a snap. Behind her, Draco chuckled, and Hermione threw the powder down. "Room of Requirement!"

They were sitting around the table, Draco having conjured extra chairs. The discussion had been going on for quite some time. Hermione played absently with the quill in her hand, listening as Draco and Harry argued.

"Don't be an idiot, Potter. Malfoy Manor probably has as many traps and as many cursed areas as the Riddle house. I can move through it without any danger to myself, since they're all set to recognize me. You'll be dead if you try it."

"And we get you out of here and off to the Manor by yourself, and just trust that you'll return to us with the Cup, instead of running off to Daddy? We're not that stupid!"

"Harry, please," Hermione begged. "Listen to what he's saying. You can't go in there by yourself. Either Draco goes, or you have to have Order backup!"

"Now you're out of your mind!" Harry snapped. "All we got out of trying to work with the Order last time, was them delaying the mission into the Riddle house until they can think of a way to keep us out of it! That's not going to happen this time. We're going to get the Cup, and see that it's destroyed!"

"I think Draco is making sense. He can get the Cup and be back here in the time it would take us to get into the building," Ginny said. "We have to take the plan that involves the least risk."

"We don't trust the ferret, Gin," Ron snapped. "That's what this whole argument is about."

"Stop it!" Hermione slammed her hand down on the table. The sharp burning of her palm just made her angrier. "This is getting us nowhere."

"Look," Draco said. "I'll tell you the same thing I told McGonagall when she asked me to go into the Chamber with you. The Dark Lord killed my mother, and I'll do anything necessary to bring him down. You have my word as a Malfoy and as a Slytherin."

"Like either of those is going to reassure us," Ginny said, sarcastically.

Harry was staring at Draco, seeming to judge his statement. The others quieted down and waited for his reaction.

"Okay. You go in after it, but first, we set up some safeguards."

"What kind of safeguards, Potter?" Draco folded his arms and glared at Harry from across the table.

"First of all, you tell us where the Cup is hidden and how to get to it. Secondly, before you go, we set up a Portkey that will take us into the Manor. Thirdly, we give you a specific amount of time, and if you don't return, we come after you… all of us!"

Draco shook his head. "I'm telling you, a Portkey won't work. The Manor is warded against them."

"Isn't there somewhere in the Manor that a guest could Portkey in? Someone arriving for a visit or a party?" Hermione asked.

Looking bemused, Draco thought for a moment. "Yeah, you're right. There is. It's a small area of the entryway to the ballroom on the second floor. It's kept warded, but I can drop the wards there once I enter the Manor."

"Here." Ginny reached up and pulled the ponytail elastic out of her hair. "We can use this. Hermione can wear it on her wrist, so it won't get lost."

Hermione took the elastic and held it out. "Draco?"

He took out his wand, and murmured over the elastic for a moment. "Portus!" He touched the wand to the elastic, and recited another spell. "That should do it. You'll be able to activate it when you need it."

Hermione slipped the band onto her wrist and felt an odd tingling to it. Must be the spell, she thought.

"What about the time limit?" said Ron.

"Two hours," Draco responded.

"Why so much time?" Harry asked, suspicion in his voice.

"First, I have to get out of Hogwarts without being discovered. Then I have to get into the Manor, which is guarded by Aurors, then make my way to the location of the Cup, while avoiding any patrols within the house. And they'll be there. Probably started patrolling the place right after my Father escaped. I may have to lay low for periods of time to make sure they miss me. Then, I have to open the hiding place, get the Cup, and go through it all again to get out of there."

"Okay," Harry agreed. "Two hours. Now… where's the Cup?"

Draco walked over to the desk, picking up a parchment and the inkwell with the gold quill. Returning to the table, he spread out the parchment and began to draw a diagram. "This is the entryway by the ballroom. The hall to the right goes into a series of parlors, small facilities for the guests, a billiard room. To the left, there's a hallway that leads to a large sitting area, for those who need to get out of the crowd in the ballroom. Just beyond that is a stairwell… here." He marked it with an "X." "Go down two flights. You'll be below the main area of the house. Exit the stairwell, follow the hall to the right, then take the first left, then a right. There's a small study in there. It was for the estate manager, back when we had one. There's a niche in the wall with a small gold statuette of Apollo in it. Touch your wand to it and say Desclores. A portion of the wall opens in. The vault contains some of my father's dearest treasures. That's where the Cup will be."

"Right," said Harry. He rolled up the parchment, shrank it, and placed it in his pocket. "Now, how do we get you out of the building?"

Ginny grinned. "We'll need a diversion, so the Headmistress and Remus don't get wind of our little escapee. I think I know just the thing."

"What's that," Ron asked.

"I go to the Headmistress and ask her to call Remus. I'll make my case again for being included in the Riddle house mission. I'll discuss my concerns about Harry, how I'm sure he's planning on making an attempt to get in on his own. I should be able to keep them tied up for a least thirty minutes."

"Good thinking," Hermione said. "And I'll get Draco out of here, in the meantime."

"You?" Harry asked. "How will you do it?"

"There's an old entryway by some of the unused classrooms at the back of the building. We'll just have to get across the grounds to the Apparition point behind the greenhouses."

"No," Draco protested. "Just get me out the door and let me get myself across the grounds. No need for you to risk being out there."

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with him," said Ron. "You stay inside."

"It has to be me," Hermione insisted. "If we run into an Order member patrolling the grounds… well, Draco and I will just be out snogging in the moonlight."

Ron groaned, and Ginny giggled. "Perfect!"

"Then let's get started," Harry commanded. "Gin, Floo back to the common room and then Floo to the Headmistress's office from there. Hermione, you and Draco head for this entryway of yours."

"What do we do?" said Ron.

"Us?" Harry laughed. "We go play chess, completed unaware that my girlfriend is spilling the beans about my plans for the Riddle house."

They lined up at the hearth, taking handfuls of Floo powder. Harry met Draco's gaze squarely.

"Good luck, Malfoy. And remember, two hours or we're in there looking for you."

"Save your threats, Potter. I'll be back."

Everything had gone smoothly so far. Hermione watched from the old doorway as Draco disappeared in the direction of the greenhouses. She couldn't help feeling a shiver of apprehension. She was sure, wasn't she, that Draco wouldn't betray them? So why was she so nervous about this whole thing? Something was nagging in the back of her mind… something that would figure in this whole plan, if she could only remember what it was.

Back in the common room, she waited with Harry, Ron, and the others. After a few minutes, Ginny Flooed in, white-faced. She went immediately to Harry and buried her face in his chest.

"A little too realistic for you, Gin?" he asked.

"Yeah. I think I got a little too into the act," she said with a sigh.

Hermione began to pace nervously. "How long has he been gone?"

"Forty minutes," Ron said, checking his watch. "He should be in the Manor by now."

"You must have a lot of faith in him," Neville said, "if you're willing to let him go after the Cup alone."

"What we don't have is a lot of options,' Harry replied. "I don't trust Malfoy any farther than I can throw him." He shot a look at Hermione. "I'm trusting her instincts."

"I really don't think he'll betray us. When he talks about his mother, he… it's hit him hard," she responded. "How long has it… ?"

"Just about an hour," Ginny said. "If you trust him so much, then why are you so anxious?"

She sighed. "Not sure, exactly. There's something nagging at me… can't quite put my finger on it. I think maybe I've missed something in all this."

"Great! Now she tells us," Ron groaned. Luna shushed him.

Susan came in and sat down next to Neville. He reached over and took her hand, without being the least bit self-conscious. She smiled. "I came in just in time to hear that last bit. Maybe if you go over the most recent conversations you had with Draco, you'll remember what it is."

"Well, we talked about his mother and the scrying bowl last time. Before that… I think it was when I got away from Lucius. He was apologizing for his father… and he was upset that the Order had questioned him about it."

"I would think he'd have expected it," Luna said.

Hermione nodded. "He did, but it still bothered him. Especially since he felt that he was… oh my god!"

Harry came to his feet, nearly sending Ginny sprawling. "What is it?"

"He said… he's just as much at risk from his father as the rest of us!" Her face had gone pale. "Harry, we've sent him into a trap!"

The rest of them were on their feet now.

"Are you sure?" Ginny asked.

"We discussed it. He said that Voldemort would demand that his father kill him because he failed to kill Dumbledore. That would be Lucius's price for reinstatement with the Death Eaters." She was almost in tears. "He's probably waiting for Draco in the manor."

To her surprise, it was Ron who spoke up first. "Then we're going after him. We'll get Draco out before Lucius gets to him."

Harry nodded. "Ron and I will… ."

"It will take more than the two of you against Lucius Malfoy, not to mention the traps in the manor. You'll need all of us," Neville said.

The others were nodding, pulling out their wands. Hermione couldn't help but wonder for a moment. Who could have imagined the strange turn of events that would pull together such a diverse group for the purpose of saving their one-time Slytherin adversary.

"Okay," Harry said. "I've got the parchment Draco gave me with directions to the vault. Everyone follows me, we stay quiet, and we stay together! Got it?" There were murmurs of assent. "Hermione, lead us to this back entrance, and we'll Portkey from behind the greenhouses."

Casting a quick spell on their shoes and clothing to prevent any noise, the group headed out of the common room, carefully checking for anyone in the vicinity. In a relatively short time, they were making their way through the unused section of the castle, past the old classrooms, to the back doorway. Harry swung it open, and peered out into the dark grounds.

"Let's go. Keep low and move quickly."

He led the way, crouching and running across the grounds. Once in the shelter of the greenhouses, they straightened up, following him around behind the farthest structure. It was just yards from the edge of the surrounding forest, and they hurried into the shelter of the nearby trees.

"Gather around me," Hermione whispered. She held out her arm, exposing the elastic around her wrist. "This is the Portkey. Everyone get in close and touch it."

They moved in, making a compact group. She glanced around to ensure that everyone was in contact. Suddenly, a figure appeared from around the end of one of the buildings. "Hey! You kids! What are you doing here?"

"Now, Hermione!" Harry commanded.

"Portus!" And she felt the familiar tug of activation, as everything whirled around her.

A jarring stop, everyone taking a second to get their balance and support the person next to them. They all stayed upright. Wands in hands, they turned as a group and surveyed the area around them.

They'd arrived in a large vestibule, directly in front of the huge doors that opened into the ballroom. The floors and walls around them were pale marble, the only light coming from a large stained-glass dome above them. The scattered colors made eerie patterns across the floor. Hermione edged over to the doors and peered into the ballroom. A huge room, the marble continuing, elegant carved chairs and divans around the walls, and a dance floor smooth as glass appeared in front of her, empty and lifeless. She shivered, the room reminding her of nothing so much as a huge mausoleum.

"He must have made it this far, at least," Ron whispered. "He got the wards down."

Harry pulled the parchment from his pocket, and enlarged it. Using his wand to provide a small light, he scanned it briefly.

"Okay. Left and through the sitting area."

The sitting area was huge, stretching out ahead of them. There were clusters of conversation areas, and a number of curtained alcoves. Perhaps that was where lovers met and held their trysts during a ball, Hermione thought. There were several doors at the far end, and the group held up as Harry looked at the parchment again.

"There's nothing here about multiple doors. We'll have to try them and see which one opens into a stairwell."

Neville took a step forward and grasped the handle of the nearest door. There was a flash of light, and he was flung away from it, landing on his back at their feet. Hermione and Susan bent over him; his eyes were open and he just shook his head at them.

"We're not getting through that way!"

Luna tried another door, which opened easily. They followed her inside, and stood gaping. This was the most opulent ladies room that Hermione had ever seen. Chaise lounges were scattered in the room, and a huge mirror ran its length, innumerable bottles of perfume and vials of cosmetics were placed on the vanity in front of it, with a number of brocade stools in place. As they stared, the lights came on throughout the room.

"Ladies, do you wish to freshen up?" the mirror inquired.

"Bloody hell!" Ron whispered.

"You, sir, do not belong in here. This facility is for the use of the ladies only."

"Thank you, no," Hermione said. "We're all leaving."

"As you wish, but none of you are presentable enough to grace the ballroom," the mirror informed them.

"Geez," Hermione said, "I'm glad that I don't have to face that mirror every morning!"

The others laughed and agreed with her. There were two doors left.

"One of these is probably the men's," Harry said. "The other had better be the stairwell, or we're back to figuring how to get through the door that attacked Neville."

He looked from one door to the other, and gestured for Hermione to come forward. He indicated the two doors.

"Your pick… which one do we try first?"

"Here." She walked over to the door on the farthest right and pulled at the handle. The door swung open silently, revealing a short hallway that ended at a stairwell. The others followed quickly, and they began the descent. It was a long flight of stairs, ending at a small landing with another door and another descending flight of stairs. Pausing on the landing, they tried to see the bottom of the next flight, but it was too far and the stairs disappeared into darkness.

"That's a long way down," Neville said.

"Draco said that we'd be below the rest of the house. Why do you suppose we haven't run into any traps yet?" Ginny asked.

"I hope that it's because Draco disabled a lot of them as he came through," Hermione answered.

"Just be ready for anything when we exit the stairwell," Harry reminded them.

Again they started down, this descent seeming to take even longer than the first. Reaching the bottom, Harry slowly pushed open the door, and looked out into the hallway.

"Seems clear," he whispered. "Pay attention. If we're going to run into anything, it'll be down here."

They followed Harry, as he directed them, led by the directions on the parchment. Nearing their goal, he suddenly stopped and held up his hand. They'd all heard the reason for his hesitation. Voices… somewhere up ahead of them. Moving carefully, wands at ready, they approached the source of the voices.

"You… the Dark Lord… BLOODY Harry Potter!"

Fragments of the conversation could be heard now. The voices were raised in anger.

"NO!... I… !"

And suddenly, screams… someone was crying out in agony.

"That's Draco!" Hermione clutched Harry's arm. "Oh gods! Lucius is killing him!"

The office door was just ahead of them, light pouring out. Inside, almost the entire back wall of the room was gone, opening into another larger room, the treasure room of Lucius Malfoy. The room contained large glass cases filled with gems, carved boxes, objets d'art. A great deal of it seemed to be Greek and Roman antiquities. They still couldn't see Lucius or Draco, but the room rang with Draco's cries.

"Spread out," Harry hissed.

Hermione followed him around to the right, and saw Ron and Luna making their way past a large case in the center of the room, while Neville and Susan moved towards the left. They heard Lucius speak.

"Finite incantatum!"

Draco stopped screaming, but she could hear him taking harsh, gasping breaths. Lucius spoke again, sounding completely reasonable and persuasive.

"There now, Draco… you don't want to make me do that again. I had hoped you would be more amenable to my instructions. You shall obey me in this, you know. I want Potter for the Dark Lord, and you will bring him to me."

Hermione moved away from Harry, and around another huge case. Lucius Malfoy was standing right there, his back to her, and she quickly crouched down. Draco lay at his feet, his face bloodied and bruised, and trying to pull himself back to his feet. She gasped softly, as she realized that he was clutching a small gold cup. As he regained his feet, his father gave a soft chuckle.

"Oh, well done, Draco. A Malfoy mustn't grovel on the ground, no matter how much he's hurting." He was staring at Draco, his face hard and set, the boy swaying slightly in front of him.

"Now, let's try again. You belong to the Dark Lord, and you will agree to bring Harry Potter to me!"

Draco was trembling from the aftermath of the Cruciatus and Hermione was shaking herself, as she watched the scene in front of her. He was gasping still, each breath seeming to hurt him, his head hung down, his hair obscuring his face. It seemed that he might collapse at any moment.

"Draco! Enough! Raise your head and answer me!"

He did just that. Taking a deep breath, he raised his face to his father, and his eyes were cold. His answer was one word, defiantly spoken.

"No."

Lucius raised his wand. "Defy me, and I will kill you where you stand."

Hermione couldn't breathe, watching Draco's face.

"Then that's what you'll have to do, because I defy you and that madman you grovel to!"

Lucius pointed his wand at Draco's chest, and Hermione screamed.

And the excitement builds! Please review - I love reviews!