Standing in the dark recesses of The Leaky Cauldron, Sirius took a few deep, calming breaths. He was merely seconds away from taking the polyjuice potion and heading to Malfoy Manor. He'd spent hours the previous day, studying Harry and Ron's memories of Draco and finding out everything he could about the blond Slytherin. He now felt as though he had enough information to successfully pose as the teenager, but he was still nervous. There was a risk to what he was doing, and he knew that if he was caught, he would be killed. However, he was trying to think positively and he refused to dwell on the potential pitfalls of his plan.
Knowing the longer he stood there, the more nervous he was getting, Sirius pulled out the bottle of polyjuice potion and downed the foul mixture. Within a couple of minutes, he had a transformed from a thirty something dark haired man to a seventeen year old blond teenager. With Harry and Ron's help, he'd already transfigured the clothing he was wearing that morning into something Draco would wear, and he had the blond's wand in his possession.
"Here we go," Sirius muttered, stepping from the shadows and approaching the public floo networks.
The plan was to floo to Malfoy Manor, as they couldn't think of any other way to breach the well protected home of the Malfoys. Unless the wards around the manor were even more intricate than Sirius suspected, the polyjuice potion and the presence of Draco's wand should get him into the house. Thankfully, they were enough and after leaving Diagon Alley, Sirius found himself transported to a fireplace in Malfoy Manor.
Stepping out of the flames, Sirius looked around at the room he had landed in. The room looked to be a small library, with shelves full of books lining every wall and an area of comfortable looking chairs and sofas in the corner around another fireplace. Sirius was guessing that the library wasn't the main one in the house, so he came to the conclusion that it was likely Draco's personal library. Harry and Ron had told him that Draco often boasted about the house he lived in, and according to the boys he'd once bragged that he had his own personal wing of the manor. Knowing a bit about rich, pureblood families, Sirius could well believe Draco had his own wing, and it would appear that was where he'd landed.
Knowing he had no time to waste, and that he wouldn't find the answers he needed in Draco's library, Sirius slipped from the room. He found himself in a long corridor with no sign of any stairs leading to the heart of the manor, so he randomly turned to his right and began his search there. After peering into a couple of rooms which didn't seem to get used very often, Sirius found himself standing in the doorway of what was clearly Draco's bedroom. Despite knowing he wouldn't find the information he wanted in the room, Sirius couldn't help but enter the room. After all, he did have a second bottle of polyjuice potion in his pocket, so he could spare a bit of time to look around.
The room was decorated in green and black, and Sirius was unsurprised to find it had a very Slytherin feel to it. Even if he hadn't known Draco was a Slytherin, he would have guessed so thanks to his bedroom. A large king sized bed dominated the room, a walk in wardrobe was partially open revealing plenty of clothes and there were several chests of drawers dotted around the room. Over beside the large window was a desk, and to the side of the desk were shelves with trophies and other momentos from Draco's childhood.
Sirius didn't inspect the entire room, but he smirked when he eyes fell on a pile of clothes laid out on Draco's bed. Chuckling at the thought of Draco having his clothes set out for him like a child, Sirius stepped forward, but then frowned as he found the clothes on the bed were not men's clothes. The dark trousers and deep red top were female clothing, as were the lacy black bra and matching knickers.
As he considered the clothes on the bed, Sirius became aware of noise coming from behind a door on the far side of the room. Cocking his head, he realised the sound came from a shower. Clearly whoever the clothes belonged to was having a shower in what he assumed was Draco's en-suite bathroom. Harry and Ron hadn't mentioned Draco being involved with anyone, so Sirius's curiosity was raised. The information about who Draco was involved with could prove valuable, so Sirius decided it was his duty to try and find out the identity of the witch in the shower.
A quick flick through the clean clothes revealed nothing, nor did a quick scout around Draco's bedroom. With no clues as to the identity of the witch in the shower, Sirius found himself edging towards the partially open door. Feeling slightly awkward, and just a bit guilty, Sirius carefully poked his head into the bathroom to try and get a peek of the mystery witch. What he found was a large glass shower in the corner of the room, with the witch in question standing under the hot water. With the steam his view wasn't perfect, but he could make out the witch had long dark hair. From the angle he was at, he couldn't see her face, but he could make out the curves of her body and he was embarrassed to find Draco's body reacting to the glimpses of the witch's breasts, long legs and pert backside.
Hurriedly backing away, Sirius turned and hurried out of the bedroom before the witch spotted him and things got awkward. Going back the way he had come, Sirius put thoughts of the naked witch out of his head and slowly the body he was in relaxed and returned to normal. Very aware that he wasn't alone in the part of the house he was in, Sirius hurried through the corridors and the first time he came to a flight of stairs he ran down them.
For an age, Sirius wandered through the manor, poking his head in dozens of rooms but not finding anything interesting. As he went he kept an eye on the time, and just before his dose of polyjuice potion was about to wear off, he drowned his second bottle. He now had one hour to find out something useful before he was forced to leave the manor and return to the Order, so Sirius picked up the pace of his searching.
Less than five minutes after taking his second dose of potion, Sirius found himself on the ground floor. However, before he could even decide where to start, one of the large ornate doors nearest to him opened and Lucius Malfoy emerged.
"There you are," Lucius said with an annoyed tut. "Get in here, Draco."
With no other choice, Sirius walked past Lucius and into the room the blond wizard was gesturing to. The room was clearly a study of some sort, although Sirius didn't get a chance to really take in the opulence of his surroundings as his focus fell to the dark haired wizard sitting behind a large dark wooden desk. Sirius had never been in the presence of Voldemort, despite fighting against him and his followers in the first war, but he knew without doubt that was who was sitting in front of him. Although, sadly he did not look ill or in any way lacking, he looked strong and dangerous, and Sirius knew he would have to tread carefully to avoid trouble.
"Ah Draco," Voldemort said, a ghost of a smile flicking over his features. "My daughter is not at all happy with you. You've got some grovelling to do if you want to get back in her good books."
Sirius nodded dumbly, trying not to let the shock he was feeling show on his face. The Order had no idea that Voldemort even had a daughter, although Sirius would make a guess and say she was curvaceous brunette in Draco's shower. The fact there was a daughter of Voldemort's, and the fact she was seemingly involved with Draco, was big news and Sirius knew it was more important than ever to get back to the Order safely. Even if he found out nothing else, it wouldn't matter as the knowledge he did have was explosive.
"Anyway, I didn't bring you here to discuss your private life," Voldemort continued. "Sit down so we can talk. Since you weren't around last night, I couldn't get your opinion."
"On what?" Sirius asked as he sat down in one of the seats in front of the desk and Lucius sat in the other one.
"Hermione," Voldemort replied. "The time is fast approaching when we need to act. Which do you think's better, a kidnapping or faking her death?"
Sirius was momentarily stunned into silence at Voldemort asking for Draco's advice. Although given the fact the blond wizard was clearly involved with his daughter, it maybe wasn't that strange that he was asking the teenager for his opinion. Still, it wasn't something Sirius was prepared for and he would have to think on his feet if he wanted to survive the conversation.
"I suppose that depends," he offered slowly as he recalled everything Harry and Ron had told him, specifically about Draco's thoughts and feelings towards muggleborns like Hermione. "Personally, I don't see any real benefit from kidnapping Hermione, unless you want to lead Har... Potter into a trap and use her as bait." Sirius inwardly winced at his almost mistake, but neither Lucius nor Voldemort reacted so he figured he'd gotten away with it. "She certainly won't talk and give you information."
"You think not?" Voldemort questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"She's a stubborn little mudblood," Sirius replied, hating having to use the M word to describe Hermione, but knowing it was what was expected of Draco. "You won't get anything from her."
"Well, since I'm not really bothered about trapping Potter, it looks like you're advocating the faked death scenario," Voldemort said.
"Why fake her death though?" Sirius questioned with a shrug, trying to appear relaxed and at ease as he was guessing Draco usually was in situations like these. "I say kill her outright."
"You want us to kill Hermione?" Voldemort asked, yet again raising an eyebrow.
"It would save us a lot of hassle," Sirius replied, mentally making plans to ensure Hermione was well protected when he returned to the Order. He hated talking about killing her, but it was how he felt Draco would respond after everything Harry and Ron had told him, and after what he'd witnessed himself in their memories.
"How so?" Voldemort asked, leaning forward, focusing intently on Sirius. "Lucius, you may leave us if you wish," he added, waving a dismissive hand in his Death Eater's direction.
"Yes, My Lord," Lucius said, raising from his seat.
Sirius was slightly concerned that he'd been rumbled and Lucius leaving was some sort of trap, but Voldemort remained focused on him and once again urged him to speak his mind. Taking a deep breath, Sirius began to tell Voldemort how dangerous he thought Hermione could be and how much help she would provide for Harry in the coming war. It repulsed him to be saying such things, but it seemed to be doing the trick and Voldemort was nodding along to everything he was saying. He would just have to make sure that Hermione had the utmost protection and that the dark never had the chance to get their hands on her.
"You make some good points, Draco," Voldemort said, sitting back in his chair and looking appraisingly at Sirius. "That's quite a dark streak you've got."
"Thank you My Lord," Sirius replied, forcing a proud smirk onto his face.
"Yes, you have definitely given me something to think about," Voldemort said.
Sirius continued to smirk, although inside he felt sick as it appeared he'd put Hermione into the dark's sights. Or at least he'd put her more firmly into their sights, as they'd clearly had a plan to deal with her all along. He was just praying that she didn't end up dead, or else it would be on his head and he didn't think he could live with the grief.
"Is that all My Lord?" Sirius asked warily. He wasn't sure it was wise to ask questions, but he was very aware of his limitations and he wanted to be well away from Voldemort when the polyjuice potion wore off and he returned to himself.
"Not quite," Voldemort replied, just as there was a knock on the door. "Come in," he called, his eyes never leaving Sirius.
Sirius glanced behind him as the door opened and Lucius returned. However, moments later his mouth dropped open when Hermione walked into the room behind the tall, blond wizard. Sirius instantly noted there was something different about Hermione, and it wasn't until she casually sauntered across the room towards Voldemort that he realised it was her attitude and the way she held herself. There was an air or confidence about her he never normally saw. That wasn't to say she was shy normally, but the girl in front of him was clearly confident in herself and what was more, she exuded a sexuality she didn't normally possess. With that final thought, Sirius took in her tight black trousers and clinging red off the shoulder top and recalled the clothes he'd spotted on Draco's bed. They'd belonged to Hermione, which meant the curvaceous brunette in the shower was Hermione. So did that mean she was also Voldemort's daughter and had been playing them the entire time? Sirius didn't know, but he did know he had a bad feeling about the turn of events.
"Surprised to see me, Draco?" Hermione asked with a slow smirk, dragging out the name 'Draco'.
If he hadn't been sure before, Sirius knew at that moment that he'd been rumbled. Hermione was clearly the daughter Voldemort had spoken of earlier, and she knew he wasn't Draco. More than likely Voldemort and Lucius had cottoned onto the fact he was an imposter the first time he called Hermione a mudblood. They'd obviously not been asking about how to take Hermione out, but how to get her away from the Order.
"What's wrong, got nothing to say?" Hermione questioned.
"He certainly had plenty to say earlier," Voldemort replied.
"So Lucius said," Hermione said. "Although he's gone quiet now."
While Hermione and Voldemort had been talking, Sirius had carefully pulled Draco's wand from his pocket. He wasn't sure how well the wand would work for him, but it was all he had. Unfortunately for Sirius, he'd forgotten about Lucius behind him, and he didn't even get the chance to raise his wand in defence before he was stunned from behind.
"I'll take that," Lucius said, yanking his son's wand from the imposter's frozen hand.
"And you will tell us who you are," Voldemort said, flicking his own wand to release the spell on Sirius's head so he could speak.
"No," Sirius spat.
"Why hold out? We're going to find out who you are," Hermione pointed out. "The polyjuice potion will be wearing off eventually. So just tell us who you are."
"No," Sirius repeated.
"Let's see if I can work it out then," Hermione said, perching herself on the edge of the desk. "Harry? No, the Order wouldn't risk 'The Boy Who Lived'. Ron? No, not smart enough to attempt to pull this off. If you were Ron, you would have messed up by now. Besides, Molly wouldn't allow it. You're someone who's smart, brave, and has a reckless streak. After all, you'd have to be reckless to try this. That leaves us with only one real option. Doesn't it, Sirius."
"I won't talk," Sirius replied, refusing to let it show how impressed he was that Hermione had worked out it was him posing as Draco.
"We can make you," Lucius hissed menacingly in his ear. "Tell me where my son is."
"Never," Sirius spat with a wicked laugh. He'd already told Harry and Ron not to mention their plan if he didn't return, and certainly not to mention Draco and his whereabouts.
"We don't need you to talk, you know," Hermione said. "In case you've forgotten, I'm part of the Order. I don't believe you've kidnapped Draco, and come up with this whole plan on your own. Someone else in the Order knows, and I'll find out who. One of them will lead me to Draco. After all, they all trust me, and with you in our custody, they have no reason not to."
Sirius blanched as he realised the truth in Hermione's words. He may have told Harry and Ron to keep quiet about their scheme, but with Hermione determined to get to the truth, she would get it from them. After all, she was their best friend and it would be only natural for them to confide in her and confess to what they'd done in order to get her help. They would have no idea that what they were really doing was giving the dark vital information. Information that would lead to them getting Draco back and them wreaking a terrible vengeance on all those involved in his kidnapping.
"I see you can see I'm right," Hermione chuckled, leaning close to Sirius and giving him a cold glare which sent shivers down his spine. "Don't worry Sirius, we'll get Draco back with or without your help. And I can personally promise you that everyone involved in your little scheme will pay for it. Enjoy the next few hours, they may be your last."
Half stunned, Sirius could do nothing but watch as Hermione turned to Voldemort and addressed him as Daddy. She informed him that she was returning to the Order, and that she'd find out where Draco was before the end of the Easter break. Sirius could see the determination in her eyes, and he knew by the end of the holidays that Draco would be back with the dark and his life would be over. The only question was, would Harry and Ron survive Hermione's wrath?