A/N: I have so many different story ideas running through my head at the moment that it is actually quite difficult to sit down and commit to writing a chapter for one individual fandom. Can't wait to be able to get all of my ideas down on paper. Long chapter :D

Disclaimer: I do not own this franchise or any rights associated with it.

Chapter 8

"Okay, so this is the plan…"

"Harry I am addressing this to you as the three of us already know this plan back to front. We are depending on you to follow it step by step. Once we are finished here, you need to run to Griffindor tower as fast as you are able to without being caught. Pack everything that belongs to you into your trunk, then shrink it so that it can fit into your pocket. You need to make it look like there's been a struggle; knock some things around, rip sheets, leave a little bit of blood in a spot that is easily visible. For now, it needs to look like you did not leave voluntarily.

There will be no one else in the tower at this time; they should all be heading to the Great Hall for dinner. You need to be in and out Harry, you cannot waste a single minute. Any delays, and we risk the entire escape failing. Now; once you're done, put your cloak on and use the map to meet us on the eighth floor. We'll be next to the portrait of King Arthur. Together we'll move to the seventh. Harry, if we are not on the eighth floor in ten minutes, you go to the seventh floor and you go into the room of requirement by without us. Do you hear me? If we are not there, you go, and you do not look back. Harry, you have to promise me that if all else fails; you will get out."

She could see the indecision clouding his face as he fought with the idea of leaving her behind. He sighed in resignation as he saw her watching him expectantly.

"I promise Hermione, no matter what happens; I'll go into that room."

"Good, now we need to go."

She walked to the door before withdrawing her wand.

"Homenum Revelio"

She glanced through the now one way invisible door before turning back to face the room.

"It's clear, both of you; go quickly."

Hermione stood back while Severus and Harry hurried out of the Head Dorms. She hastily shut it behind them before looking at Draco. He stepped towards her, clasping her hand in his and squeezing it tight in reassurance.

"Let's go Mia"

She kissed him briefly on the mouth before they both rushed up the stone staircase that led to both of their rooms. While hers was mostly a decoy room that was made to look slept in, a few of her belongings were still in there. They separated in the corridor that separated the two rooms, letting go of each other's hands.

She was calm as she stood in the middle of the room. She knew that for their plan to work successfully, they had to remain calm. Working oneself into a frenzy only made a situation worse; forcing your brain to shut down and forget things as panic set it. Therefore; she was calm as she moved her wand in an arc around the room

"Pack"

Hermione stood still as her belongings floated into the air before flying towards and into her open bags. Within seconds all of her personal touches to the room had been removed. It was as if no one had even lived in this room recently. It looked exactly as it had before her and Draco had moved in. Perfect. She shrunk her bags before sliding them into the pocket of her robes.

She met Draco at the base of the staircase less than three minutes after they had just ascended them. Before opening the portrait hole, she once again looked through to check that there were no witnesses outside before both her and Draco cast the disillusionment charm on themselves. It wasn't as effective as Harry's invisibility cloak, but it would have to do. The Head Dorms were on the twelfth floor, Griffindor tower on the tenth. The extra time they would take navigating the extra too floors would be the extra time Harry needed to fake the scene in his dorm room. She silenced their feet and cancelled the charm on the door before they both snuck out into the corridor. She looked back as the portrait clicked shut behind them, smiling in return as the Veela princess grinned mischievously at her almost invisible form before winking. They steadily made their way towards the sixth floor, not a soul in sight. The candles flickered in their brackets as they passed, the amber flames casting life-like shadows across the stone walls. They had made it to the ninth floor without incident before they heard the sounds of footsteps tapping against the cobbled floors ahead of them.

Draco grabbed her forearm as he pulled them both against the wall, the spell allowing them to blend in with the tapestry behind their backs. They were silent as two third year Griffindor girls passed by them, their attention elsewhere as they discussed the apparent perks of dating fifth year boys.

"The naivety of youth…", Hermione whispered as soon as the girls had turned the corner. "Their only worry; gaining the attention of a boy."

"You know better than anyone that that does not apply to all girls of their age", Draco whispered back at her as he pulled her back into the middle of the corridor. They would have to hurry now, those girls had been heading back towards the tower, which meant that others could also already be finished with dinner; also heading back towards their respective dormitories. They increased their pace, making it to the meeting spot on the eighth floor without any further incidences. They hid in a dark alcove a few meters away from the patch of blank wall that shielded the room, before cancelling the disillusionment charm. She clasped the wizard-made watch that hung on a chain around her neck, between her fingers. Nine minutes. They had one more minute before the others would be late. Hermione watched as the seconds ticked by, her imagination providing the tick tick tick that the magical watch silenced. At ten seconds to go she let it drop back down to hang against her chest, looking up to watch her surroundings for any sign of the others. She would have startled at the almost silent rustling to her left had she not been expecting it.

"Any longer and he will be late"

"I just hope he wasn't caught Severus", she replied quietly.

Hermione had just started to worry three minutes later, when she heard the highly muffled sound of footsteps that she knew the cloak created when ones feet were not silenced. Harry's head popped into existence in front of her as he let the cloak drop down onto his shoulders.

"I know I'm late. I had to wait for these young girls to move out of the portrait hole. They were just standing in the middle of it chatting!"

"Probably the same girls we ran into too. Let's get inside before somebody else comes."

She glanced both ways before stepping before the wall. She paced in front of it, being careful of her wording as she thought about what she wanted.

I need somewhere safe to hide; away from the traitorous master. I need a place to keep me hidden, a place with an exit. A place that will not betray us to any other than those that are true trusted friends.

She stopped as they watched the door forge itself into the wall. She grinned briefly at them before ushering them though the opening. The hole sealed itself again as she closed the door behind herself. Hermione took in the room around her. It looked the same as it had the last time she had been in here with Draco to assess the safety of the room against the people they did not want finding them. It was large; similar to the living room at home, with comfortable looking armchairs littered strategically across the room. A fire was lit in the centre of the room, its heat already tangible in the air. She let herself drag her feet across the thick rug that carpeted almost the entire room, its fibres protecting against the harsh chill of the stone underneath. While it was summer in Scotland, the castle could get awfully cold during the dark of night.

Hermione waited until they were all comfortably seated before she started talking. She let herself relax into the warmth of Draco's arms.

"We'll be safe here. The room won't let anyone in that we don't want it to. We need to stay here for a few days, lie low. With chaos out there not all of our friends will be able to get to us right now. There are rooms through that door there. If you need anything else, just ask. We put some non-perishable foods in here a few days ago, so we'll just have to survive on that until they get here. Otherwise, get comfortable."

She rested her head in the crook of his neck, her eyes closing as her hand rested on the area of skin on his chest that was above his heart. It beat steadily, a reassuring vibration against her fingertips.

"You did it Mia, all four of us are alive and safe for now."

"For now, yes. But what about the others Draco? They still need to get out too. Anything could go wrong."

"My Mia, for now; we must take comfort in the fact that neither of us has been taken, and that we have gained a small achievement in removing Harry from the situation. Rest my love, we need your brilliant mind working fully when it is time to leave."

Their quiet conversation was interrupted as the sound of a chair scraping against stone filled the room. Her eyes flickered open. Harry was getting up, moving towards the four-seater that Severus was currently lounging on. She wanted to see where this was going.

Elsewhere in the castle – Ten minutes earlier, unknown POV

"You better hit the right fucking spot", she hissed at him as he held her close to him.

"Shut up and let me work baby", he snarled back into her ear.

She bit her lip hard enough to draw blood as the needle sunk into the delicate skin of her neck. She could feel as the potion begun to make its way through her bloodstream. She hoped like hell that this worked. They had already had to use the muggle method of using a needle to insure that the concoction would have the ultimate effect when the time came.

She flipped her hair over her shoulder as she moved backwards away from him.

"See you later baby", she winked at him as she spun around; flouncing out of the darkened alcove and skipping through the door of the great hall.

He grinned wickedly before fading back into the shadows, a fleeting flash of candlelight glinting off the mask covering his face before he disappeared.

The Great Hall

The hall was filled with the sounds of chatter. From one side of the hall to the other; students sat in groups, conversing with their friends as they consumed the feast that lay before them. Troughs upon troughs of decadently cooked food burdened the wooden house tables. While all was well within the minds of a majority of the inhabitants, there was unease at the Head table. The professors were baffled by the strange set of events that they had just witnessed. Madame Pomfrey had only moments before; come rushing through the door behind the table at which the professors sat with an angry looking Ronald Weasley trailing behind her. She had whispered urgently into the Headmasters ear before the three of them had rushed back through the same door that she had entered by. And while it was not strange for Professor Snape to occasionally miss dinner due to one unstable potion or another, they had expected him in the hall tonight. It was all so very strange…

Their musings were interrupted by a loud explosion. The heavy oak doors of the Great Hall blasted inwards as they were hit with the curse. Students screamed as they dived underneath the tables to protect themselves from flying debris. They cowered even further when they saw who was standing in the rubble that was now the door.

A black robed person stood there, their face covered with a snake like mask. Ginny Weasley was in the persons arms, their wand held at her throat. She had been sitting at the end of the table, one of the closest to the door. A chuckle echoed through the room as the Professors ran into an invisible barrier, stopping them from reaching her.

"You're too late. Now you all get to watch while she suffers for your incompetence."

"You will not get away with this", she spat towards the mask.

"Oh I will…AVADA KEDAVRA!", the shout travelled through the room as green light blinded all of those within.

Students screamed as Ginny's body slumped, their panic growing stronger as her body was dragged out of the doorway.

"You'll see me again, don't worry…"