Prisoner of War.
Hermione Granger suddenly jolted to alertness, the cold, hard wall she was resting up against making any sort of decent sleep possible. Not to mention the fact she was sitting on a stone flooring that was also freezing cold. To be honest it was a miracle she'd even managed to drift off for the brief bit of sleep she'd managed. After all, being held prisoner wasn't exactly the ideal situation to be getting some decent rest.
Hermione was currently imprisoned in a large stone basement, along with the vast majority of the Order of the Phoenix. The previous evening the Order property Hermione had been staying in alongside her best friend, Ron Weasley, and a few other people, had been attacked by Death Eaters. The attack had come in the middle of the night, and the Death Eaters had managed to get through all the wards surrounding the house without raising any alarms. They also managed to erect several wards of their own, preventing anyone from leaving the property and preventing anyone without a Dark Mark the ability to perform magic. The limitations meant Hermione and the others had to fight physically, and with the Death Eaters using magic they were soon subdued and whisked away.
It was only when they arrived in the large room they were currently imprisoned in that Hermione, Ron and the others from the house they'd been staying at realised their house hadn't been the only one attacked that evening. The room quickly filled up with various Order members, and it soon became clear over a dozen Order houses had been targeted. The stories from everyone were also the same as Hermione and Ron's. They were attacked in the middle of the night, with the Death Eaters slipping through all the Order's protection spells with ease. Like at the house Hermione and Ron had been staying, wards had prevented people escaping and using magic.
The attacks had clearly been premeditated and meticulously planned out. The big question everyone had, was had they been betrayed by someone in the Order? The Death Eaters had to have gotten their information about the safe houses from someone who knew about them. Not to mention their ability to circumvent every single protection spell the Order had erected around each house.
The debate over if they had a traitor in their midst had raged for several hours after everyone had been imprisoned. Most people were leaning towards someone betraying them, but then the speculation turned to who. While most of the Order were currently sitting imprisoned in some dank basement, there were a few notable absentees and suspicion had fallen on them. The two prime suspects were Percy Weasley, who had a history of turning his back on his family, and Mundungus Fletcher, a common thief not many people in the Order trusted. Most of the Weasleys, Molly in particular, refused to believe Percy would betray them, but the fact remained he hadn't been captured. As for Mundungus, no-one spoke up in his defence as everyone believed that if the incentive was right he would turn to Voldemort in an instant.
Totally exempt from suspicion, even though they weren't amongst the prisoners, were Harry Potter, the boy they were all counting on to defeat Voldemort, and Albus Dumbledore, the founder of the Order and headmaster of Hogwarts. Harry and Dumbledore had left on a special assignment a few days earlier, the second Hogwarts had broken up for the summer holidays. Even though no-one knew where they were going, they just knew Dumbledore had a fresh lead on one of Voldemort's Horcruxes, suspicion still hadn't fallen on the pair. Everyone knew Dumbledore and Harry wouldn't betray them, they would more than likely die before they gave up anyone in the Order.
However, debating how they'd ended up as prisoners hadn't gotten them anywhere so slowly the debate had been dropped and attention had turned to how they could escape. When Hermione dozed off, a few people were checking out their surroundings, but it wasn't looking hopeful. Wherever they were being held, they were securely locked up and there was no obvious way out.
"Have I missed anything?" She asked Ron, who was slouched against the wall beside her.
"Nothing," Ron replied bitterly. "There's no way out of here, Hermione. We're well and truly trapped."
"Until Voldemort decides to come and get us," Hermione said.
"Do you think he will?" Ron asked in concern.
"Either that, or he'll just kill us all," Hermione replied. "I think we've lost, Ron. There's no way out of this."
"You have to think positively," Ron urged, taking hold of Hermione's hand and giving it a squeeze. "Harry and Dumbledore are still out there."
"Even so, we can't expect them to rescue all of us," Hermione argued. "Look around Ron, the heart of the Order are sitting in this room. The only person in your family missing is Percy, half the Professors from Hogwarts are here, not to mention several other important members of the Order. Face it, Ron, we're doomed."
"No." Ron shook his head stubbornly. "I refuse to believe that."
Even as Ron uttered his words of defiance, there was sounds from outside the room. Everyone had heard the sounds and several people jumped to their feet, ready to fight for their freedom. No-one was shackled to the walls or anything, but they already knew their magic still wasn't working. Fighting was the only way out of the situation they were in.
Hermione was on her feet next to Ron as the door to the room slowly opened and three robed Death Eaters appeared in the doorway. The second the door was open, Kingsley Shackelbolt rushed forward, only to be thrown back by an invisible force.
"Idiot," One of the Death Eaters sneered as he pulled out his wand.
The other two Death Eaters followed suite, and quickly cast several charms before they entered the room. The charms had left everyone in the Order frozen to the spot, unable to move as the trio entered the room.
"What do you want?" Ron asked, trying in vain to move his feet.
"You'll see," One of the Death Eaters replied with an evil chuckle.
"Malfoy," Ron hissed, recognising the voice as belonging to the blond Slytherin they'd went to school with.
"Yes Weasley, what can I do for you?" Draco drawled as he pushed back his hood, revealing his platinum blond hair and pale, sneering face.
"You're going to pay for this," Ron warned. "You'll never get away with this."
"I rather think we have," Draco replied with a cackle. "Boys, grab the first group."
"Anyone in particular?" One of the other two Death Eaters asked, looking around at the frozen prisoners.
"Just grab half a dozen," Draco ordered. "But leave Weasley for a while. Let him stew over what's happening upstairs."
The two still robed Death Eaters nodded and each reached for the two nearest people to them and snapped magical shackles onto their hands and feet. Draco did the same, grabbing Luna Lovegood and Dean Thomas. As the trio of Death Eaters left with their prisoners, Draco lowered the spells keeping everyone in place, but the spells didn't fully drop until the cell door had slammed closed.
"Bastard," Ron cried, angrily kicking at the wall.
"Lashing out at walls isn't helping anyone," Ron's sister, Ginny, scolded.
"Ginny's right," Molly said softly. "From the looks of things, I'd say they're going to be back for more people. We need to work out how to escape once they take us out of this room."
Ron looked as though he was going to argue with his mother, but instead he nodded his head and slumped back against the wall as a debate began to range about what to do once they were led from the room. Unfortunately, no decision had been reached when Draco and his cronies returned to get another half dozen people. The Death Eaters immobilised everyone in the same way, so the Order couldn't put up a fight as six more of their number were spirited away.
The same routine followed for the next hour or so, with the Death Eaters returning and taking people away in groups of six. In that time no solid plans had been created for people to escape, but it was decided that if they got any opportunity to escape they would take it. However, considering things had just carried on with the transferring of prisoners those left behind soon decided that no-one had managed to escape.
All too soon, there was just six people left in the stone room. As Draco had promised, Ron was amongst those in the final group, alongside Hermione and Ginny. Professor Flitwick was also with them, as were Nymphadora Tonks and Remus Lupin.
"What do you think will happen when they come for us?" Ginny whispered. She'd been getting increasingly worried as more people had left the room, and it was made worse by the fact all her family apart from Ron had been taken and she had no idea what had happened to them.
"Don't worry Gin, I'll be with you the entire time," Ron vowed, hugging his little sister into his side. "And remember, if anyone gets the chance to escape, take it. Even if just one of us gets away, they can find Harry and Dumbledore and lead them back to the rest of us."
"Lead them where?" Tonks asked. "In case you hadn't noticed, no-one is coming back. They're all being moved."
"Or killed," Ginny wailed.
"No-one is getting killed," Ron insisted.
"You hope," Hermione muttered as sounds could once again be heard from outside the room.
The remaining group gathered together as the door once again swung open and they were faced with the trio of Death Eaters. In a well-practiced move, Draco had the group frozen before he and his cohorts stepped into the room. Predictably Ron instantly began to hurl insults at Draco, but the blond was un-fazed as he produced some shackles and slapped them on Ron's wrists and ankles. He then produced a second set of shackles, and did the same to Hermione.
"Let's go boys," He called, gripping Ron and Hermione by the upper arms and releasing the freezing spell on their feet so they could walk.
"I'm not going to make this easy on you, Malfoy," Ron spat, refusing to move when Draco yanked at his arm.
"This isn't going to stop me, Weasley," Draco grumbled, glaring at Ron, his wand pointing in his direction even though his hand was still gripping onto Hermione's arm. "Imperio! Now move it Weasley."
Hermione saw Ron trying to struggle against Draco's order, but the Imperius curse was too strong for the redhead to fight. Despite his best intentions, he had no choice but to do as the blond said and get moving. However, that didn't stop him complaining bitterly the entire time, and vowing that Draco would pay for what he was doing.
"Do you ever stop talking Weasley?" Draco asked as he hauled Ron and Hermione up a flight of stone steps, his fellow Death Eaters following behind with the others. "You would think given the situation that you would be quiet. Are you not even the slightest bit afraid of what's waiting for you?"
"I'm not afraid of you, or your boss," Ron insisted, although Hermione could hear the slight tremor in his voice and could see the fear in his eyes.
Draco could also spot that Ron was faking his indifference, and he merely laughed as he continued up the stairs with his prisoners. Once at the top of the stairs, the group emerged into a well-lit hallway, lined with thick grey carpet. They were clearly in someone's house, and judging from the way Draco was taking charge, Malfoy Manor was the obvious contender.
Draco led the group down the hallway, before stopping outside a closed doorway. Ordering Ron to stop, he let go of the redhead and knocked on the door. Without waiting for an answer, he pushed open the door and grabbing hold of Ron he hauled him and Hermione inside.
Unsurprisingly, Voldemort was standing in the centre of the room, looking his usual menacing self. Seated on a chair behind him was Lucius Malfoy, looking rather indifferent to the prisoners who were dragged into the room and lined up in front of The Dark Lord.
"These are the last group, My Lord," Draco said, as he once again froze the prisoners in place and dropped the Imperius curse he had over Ron.
Voldemort nodded, before turning to the two robed Death Eaters. "You two may leave us now. Thank you for your work, today."
The two Death Eaters bowed their heads respectfully, before backing out of the room. While the pair exited the room, Draco made his way across the room and stood next to his father, who had risen to his feet and was curiously regarding the prisoners.
"It looks like you saved the best to last, Draco," Voldemort chuckled, his beady red eyes darting over the six people standing in front of him.
"I tried, My Lord," Draco replied, sounding slightly smug.
"I think we'll deal with the lesser people first," Voldemort announced, moving to stand in front of Professor Flitwick. "Ah, Filius Flitwick. I'm afraid a Charms Professor is of no use to me."
With a casual flick of his wand, Flitwick found himself on the end of the fateful killing curse. Ginny burst into tears as the small Professor crumbled to the floor, while Ron, Tonks and Lupin all began to shout and argue with Voldemort.
"Silence," Voldemort cried, waving his wand and rendering his prisoners speechless. "Why must they always argue?" He muttered as he turned to face Lucius. "Lucius, clear the mess, will you?"
Lucius nodded, but instead of moving to get rid of Flitwick's body himself, he merely called for a house elf. "Take the body and place it with the others," He ordered.
Everyone who was still a prisoner flinched at the mention of other bodies, and they all started to wonder just who hadn't survived the meeting with Voldemort. Judging by the casual way in which he'd just killed Flitwick, they suspected a fair few members of the Order were no more. They were all just hoping no-one they loved was among the dead.
"Next we have Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks," Voldemort said, turning back to the task in hand now Flitwick's body had been disposed of. "Now, will either of you be useful to me? Draco, what do you think?"
"I can't see the werewolf being any use to you," Draco replied, openly giving his former Professor an unimpressed look. "He's pretty pathetic. He doesn't embrace his inner wolf like Greyback."
"No, he doesn't," Voldemort agreed. "But he does have Potter's trust. He might know something useful."
"He might," Draco said with a nod. "Potter always did like him."
"I'll keep him," Voldemort decided. "And what about the witch? What do you say Draco, what should I do with your cousin?"
"I would kill her," Draco announced firmly, not seeming at all bothered when Ron silently fumed at him. "But not before I found out everything she knew about the Order, not to mention the Ministry. She could prove quite useful for the time being."
"My thoughts exactly," Voldemort said with a firm nod. "Lucius, place them with the others."
"Yes, My Lord," Lucius said, stepping forward and whisking Tonks and Lupin away before anyone could react.
"And now for the final three," Voldemort said with a smirk as he moved closer to the three youngsters. Flicking his wand, he released the spell that silenced the trio and immediately the sound of Ginny's loud sobs filled the room.
"You complete bastard," Ron seethed. "You won't get away with this."
"Really?" Voldemort chuckled. "And who's going to stop me?"
"Harry," Ron replied. "Harry will defeat you, just wait and see."
"I rather think I have Potter where I want him," Voldemort said, a smirk playing around his lips. "Especially now I have his precious girlfriend." Moving over to Ginny, he ran his finger down her cheek, making her shudder.
"Get your hands off my sister," Ron exploded.
"Fiery, aren't you?" Voldemort laughed.
"More like annoying," Draco muttered.
"Now now, Draco, you can't blame the boy for trying to protect his sister," Voldemort scolded. "Shame it won't work though. The little redhead is my way of getting Potter in my grasp."
"It won't work," Ginny said through her tears, determined to be strong now it was clear she was going to live. "Harry will never fall for your wicked plans. He won't fall into a trap."
"He won't come and save his girl?" Voldemort questioned with a raised eyebrow. "What sort of boyfriend, is he?"
"A sensible one," Ginny retorted. "He won't sacrifice himself for me."
"Then he doesn't love you," Draco said with a snort.
"And what makes you such an expert on love?" Ron asked with a snort.
"I know that I would sacrifice myself for the witch I love," Draco replied with a casual shrug. "I would go to the ends of the earth for her, and she knows it. She knows if she was ever in danger, I would save her. It's a shame Potter wouldn't do the same for his girlfriend."
"I suppose we'll soon find out," Voldemort mused. "Although, it might be good to have extra ammunition to use against him. How about double the incentive for him to step into my trap. His girlfriend, and his best friend?"
"Which one?" Draco asked. "You don't need both Weasley and Granger."
"No, I don't," Voldemort agreed with a nod.
Before he could elaborate further, Lucius returned and informed him the prisoners had been ensconced with the others.
"Excellent," Voldemort said. "Now to decide about these last two. I have to admit, I like the Weasley boy's fire. It could be quite entertaining to keep him with his sister. The two together could be quite the incentive for Potter to make a deal with me."
"And what about the Granger girl?" Lucius asked. "She might be quiet today, but I know from experience she's no wallflower. She won't give you any information. She's tough. Probably tougher than Weasley."
Voldemort turned to where Draco was still standing "Do you agree, Draco?"
"I do." Draco nodded in agreement with his father. "Granger is the toughest of all the Order. You won't get her to talk."
"Maybe," Voldemort mused as he made his way over to Hermione. "But it's such a shame for her to go to waste. She's such a pretty little thing." Like he had with Ginny earlier, Voldemort ran his finger down Hermione's cheek. But unlike Ginny, Hermione didn't flinch, she stood strong in the face of Voldemort. "You're not afraid of me, are you?" He asked, noticing the way the brunette girl stood her ground.
"No, I'm not afraid of you," Hermione replied, and everyone on the room knew she was telling the truth. Even Ron and Ginny knew she wasn't lying, although they weren't really sure why Hermione wasn't afraid of Voldemort. As a muggleborn she should be the one most afraid of him.
"I like her," Voldemort said with a chuckle as he stepped backwards. "I don't want to kill her, but I don't need two friends of Potter's. I've already given Blaise and Theo a reward for making sure the raids went as planned, it's time for you to get yours, Draco."
"My Lord?" Draco questioned, confusion evident on his face as he stepped forward.
"The Granger girl," Voldemort explained. "She's all yours."
"No way," Ron exploded as a slow smirk appeared on Draco's face. "I won't let you touch her, Malfoy."
"You won't be in any position to stop me, Weasley," Draco retorted as he moved across to stand beside Hermione. "Don't worry Granger, you and I can have some fun," he whispered in her ear. "You're going to make a nice little plaything," he then added in a normal voice so everyone could hear.
"Git," Hermione hissed, her brown eyes flashing dangerously.
"It's part of my charm," Draco replied, giving Hermione a wicked grin.
"And what about your girlfriend?" Ron demanded as he once again tried unsuccessfully to break the spell that was keeping him frozen in place. "The one you professed to love so much. What will she think of your new plaything?"
"She's very understanding," Draco answered, reaching out and brushing his hand over Hermione's long, curly hair. "She won't mind me having a bit of fun with Granger."
Voldemort chuckled as Ron continued to rant and rave at the young blond man. Blocking the redhead out, he turned to Lucius and checked he had a private room ready for Ginny and Ron.
"Everything's ready," Lucius confirmed. "We can keep them until we decide on a trap for Potter."
"Excellent," Voldemort replied. "Lucius, you deal with the Weasleys. Draco, you can take the girl and go."
"Don't worry Hermione, we'll save you," Ron called as Draco took hold of Hermione's hand and got ready to spirit her away.
"And what makes you think she'll want saving, Weasley?" Draco retorted. "A couple of hours in my company and Granger will be begging to stay as my captive."
Ron didn't get a chance to respond as Draco pulled out his wand, and disappeared with Hermione. When the pair reappeared, they were in a large bedroom, sumptuously decorated in green and black. As soon as they landed, Draco removed the shackles from Hermione's wrists and ankles and ended the spell that kept her frozen in place.
"Finally," Hermione declared, rubbing at her wrists as she could once again move. "Could you lot have moved any slower? Did I have to be among the last group sorted?"
"We decided Weasley needed to see you be handed over to me," Draco replied with a shrug. "It'll be torture for him, locked away wondering just what I'm getting up to with you."
"And just what are you going to be getting up to?" Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Nothing you won't enjoy," Draco promised with a grin, as he pulled Hermione into his arms and slanted his lips over hers.
Hermione melted into the kiss, relieved that her act was finally over. After years of undercover work, she could finally be herself. Finally she could rid herself of the shackles of pretending to be a muggleborn, and embrace her true identity of the daughter of The Dark Lord.
It had been Hermione who had given the Death Eaters details of all the Order safe houses, and how to bypass the wards. She'd also given them the perfect time to strike when Harry and Dumbledore were away as security was always slightly less stringent when Harry wasn't in residence. She'd then just had to wait with the other prisoners, until the time came for her to be separated from them. Of course they'd kept up the act of her being taken away against her will just in case something went wrong and someone escaped. Not that it looked like that was going to happen, but it was still amusing to think of how worried Ron would be about her.
"Who came up with the idea to give me to you?" Hermione asked her boyfriend as they finally parted. Draco had been her best friend since before they'd started Hogwarts, and romance had developed in their last couple of years at school.
"That was your father's," Draco replied with a smirk. "He wanted something to really get to Weasley. I just played along, implying I would have my wicked way with you."
"Only implying?" Hermione asked with a pout. "I was looking forward to being at the mercy of the big bad Death Eater."
"Really?" Draco's grey eyes lit up in delight at the prospect of a bit of role-playing fun with his girlfriend.
"Really," Hermione confirmed. "Once you've told me everything that happened, I'll give you full control for the rest of the day. I'll play the part of terrified prisoner while you can play the dark wizard, having some fun with me."
"Deal," Draco said with a grin.
Settling down on the bed, the couple talked for over an hour as Draco filled Hermione in on what had happened the previous evening with the raids. He then explained what had happened to each member of the Order, and whether they'd been disposed of or kept for further questioning. And of course, she'd always known Ron and Ginny were going to be kept somewhere so they could be used to lure Harry into a trap. Despite Harry being the supposed saviour of the wizarding world, Hermione also knew he was deeply sentimental, and he wouldn't think twice of risking his own life to save the two people he loved the most.
Hermione was confident the plan would work, and they could get their hands on Harry without much fuss. Her father could then kill him, and with the rest of the Order already captured, only Dumbledore would stand in between her father and world domination. And even Dumbledore wouldn't be a big threat without his support network. With Harry and the Order gone, Dumbledore would be easy to take care of and Voldemort would rule the world, with Hermione right at his side where she belonged.
But for now the end of the war could wait, Draco and Hermione had the rest of the day to themselves, and Draco had earned himself a reward for organising the attacks on the Order. Voldemort had given him Hermione as a reward, and he was keen to make sure the Gryffindor golden girl knew that she now belonged to him.
"Okay Granger, it's time for you to prove yourself," Draco ordered, slipping into his act as Hermione slipped into hers and pretended to glare at him. "I expect obedience from my captives."
"I don't do obedience, Malfoy," Hermione spat.
"I can change that," Draco said, forcefully grabbing Hermione and hauling her to her feet. "You're mine now, Granger, and I'm going to make sure you know it. Now be a good girl, and strip, before I force you to do it. This will be easier for you, if you just do what I say."
Hermione gave Draco another mock glare as she began to slowly strip off her clothes. She was quite enjoying their act, and she was already making plans for getting Draco at her mercy and having him bow to her as The Dark Lord's daughter. One thing was for sure, with the end of the war looming, the couple had plenty of time to look to the future. A future where they would be together in the dark world Voldemort was going to create.