A/N: One hundred percent AU. Harry and Ron left Hermione behind to look for Horcruxes and then Hermione's mandatory presence at Hogwart's is requested.

Pairing is Hermione/Draco, rated M for themes of profanity, perhaps smut, torture, and death.

Let me know what you think :)? X

MEMOIRS OF AN UNTOLD STORY

CHAPTER FOUR:

THE UNBREAKABLE VOW

oOo

"'The answers you need will soon be sought?'" Neville finished reading the riddle, handing it back to Hermione "What the hell does that mean? And who put it there?".

Hermione sighed and looked back up to Ginny and Neville, sitting across from her at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall "It's obviously a riddle but to what? I have no idea. I was out for a few hours, someone must have slipped it into my pocket".

"Maybe it's a trap" Neville turned to glare at the Slytherin table "If anyone was going to pull a trap it'd be Slytherins".

"I wish we could use the library" Ginny sighed annoyedly "I went in there this morning, to see if any of the 'Defence Against The Dark Arts' textbooks was lying about and Snape chucked me out and told me to mind my own business" she growled.

"That's the second time Snape's been in the library in the last 2 days" Hermione frowned "Before Dumbledore died the only place you'd find Snape was in the Dungeons with his little potions".

"Dumbledore didn't just die" Neville pointed out, his voice pained, "He was murdered".

Hermione looked down, unsure of why she had worded her previous sentence as if Dumbledore had merely just passed away. Of course he didn't just pass away. He was murdered, before his time.

There was another pause of awkward silence before Neville spoke again, his voice stronger and clearer "I'm sure we could work this out" he frowned, "'North long tower?'" he quoted suddenly "They don't mean the North Tower do they?".

"The Divination Tower?" Ginny's head snapped round.

"Oh yes!" Hermione cried, eyes wide "I forgot, centuries ago, they called the Divination Tower the North Long Tower because it was so tall!" her eyes skimmed over the note again "'By the stroke of Twelve on this eve night' Stroke of Twelve… Midnight?" she raised her head with a gleam in her eyes "Whoever wrote this note wants to meet at the North Tower, tonight - 'this eve night' - at midnight".

Neville sat back, a little bit startled "Are you really gonna go?".

"What about all that answers stuff in the riddle?" Ginny spoke up suddenly "Does that mean they want to help you? With what?".

"I have no idea" Hermione shrugged, biting her lip.

"Or it could be a trap and the answer thing was just put there to entice your curiosity" Neville interrupted "I mean if this person really did want to help why would they be all weird about it and send you a riddle? Why hide their identity?".

"In case the person who wants to help is someone who shouldn't be helping me" Hermione said, mainly to herself, glancing over to the Slytherin table.

"Like a Slytherin?" Ginny raised her eyebrow, following Hermione's gaze.

"Okay, I didn't give it much thought because I thought he was just trying to be a dick like all the other Slytherins but Blaise Zabini tried to talk to me, he said something about it being private and urgent" Hermione rambled "What if he was trying to help me? Us?".

"6 and a half years of Slytherin torment and now you want to go picnicking with them?" Neville frowned, "They're all evil, Hermione".

"I refuse to believe that" Hermione sat back "Blaise Zabini and Draco Malfoy were the ones who took me to Madam Pomfrey".

"What?" Ginny and Neville cried at the same time.

"Why didn't you tell us that small but crazy piece of information?" Ginny hissed.

"Because I knew how you'd react" Hermione replied "I was talking to Zabini when I fainted, my guess is Malfoy joined him somewhere between my fainting and the journey to Madam Pomfrey. But I'm still here aren't I? Still alive".

"Hermione, Snape needs you alive. Voldemort needs you alive" Neville whispered the last part "You said it yourself. Draco told you he was only helping to keep you alive to lure Harry back".

"Maybe" Hermione rubbed her eyes tiredly "I don't know… I don't know anything anymore".

"Look just promise us you won't go to the North Tower tonight?" Ginny stressed, "Please Hermione, it's too dangerous, please don't go".

"…Okay" Hermione let out a deep sigh "I won't go to the North Tower tonight" she paused "I'm gonna go take a shower, had enough of dinner" she put the riddle back into her pocket and smiled at her friends before getting up and walking out of the Great Hall.

Ginny sighed as she watched Hermione walk away. "Guess we're going to follow her to the North Tower tonight?".

"Yep" Neville raised his eyebrow "It's gonna be a long night".

oOo

As Hermione walked into the Head's dorm she watched the portrait door close itself back over. Draco wasn't in the living room and she sighed relief when she found he wasn't in the kitchen either. Hermione let herself sink into the couch, thinking about that damned riddle. She knew in her heart she had to go tonight and at least try and find out who wrote it. She didn't know much about her life anymore but she definitely didn't quit.

It was about an hour later when Draco returned. Hermione was sitting in the same position, reading a text book. Her eyes wavered slightly but she kept them focused on the book as he shrugged off his jumper, dumped it onto the table and walked into the kitchen. She could tell by his actions he was agitated and annoyed and she could not be bothered fighting with him when all she could do was worry and wonder about who was going to be there at The North Tower.

Hermione looked over, slightly irritated Draco was being so loud in the kitchen and she tried to focus her attention back to her textbook. Focus! she thought loudly. But when Draco dropped a glass and it shattered on the floor, Hermione growled and got up, shoving her book to one side. She walked in and found Draco cursing repeatedly under his breath as he took out his wand and made it whole again. Hermione watched him as he picked the newly reformed glass off the ground and onto the counter.

"Is there something you need?" Draco snapped, looking up at her as he poured a glass of juice.

"Just wondering how long you'll be trashing the kitchen for, I was trying to study" Hermione bit out.

"Why do you even bother?" Draco moved forwards as he put the carton of juice away, "In case you haven't noticed grades don't really count this year".

"I know" Hermione stiffened, "But I'm not going to change who I am just because things are different" she turned around and walked back into the living-room, reopening her textbook.

Draco appeared from the doorway, like a predator to it's prey and suddenly Hermione felt very open and bare. As she briefly caught his eyes a surge of sensation coursed through her and she felt a rise of heat appear in her chest and neck. Her eyes looked old and wise and tortured and so very piercing that he could almost see right through her.

After a few minutes Hermione couldn't stand being stared at any longer and she snapped her book shut and looked up, "Is there something you need?" she smiled, mocking his earlier words.

"Yes" Draco replied instantly but went silent, leaving Hermione with a frustrated expression forming on her face. Hermione was on the verge of insulting him but she remembered what had happened earlier that day and her demeanor suddenly changed.

She sighed painfully and looked up, "Thank you".

"Maybe I misheard you there" Draco moved forwards, "Did you just thank me?".

"Yes" Hermione held his eye contact "Thank you, for taking me to Madam Pomfrey with Blaise after I passed out".

At this, Draco went tense and looked away from her. "What happened, exactly?" he asked slowly. Blaise's answer had been too vague for him.

"Blaise was trying to talk to me" Hermione started, leaving out the specifics "And I remember just fainting in the middle of my sentence".

"He was trying to talk to you?" Draco's blue eyes went a dark shade, "What was he saying?".

"Asked if the rumours about my injuries were true" Hermione lied on the spot. If Blaise was the mystery note writer and he really did want to help, there was no point basically giving him over to the enemy. Hermione still didn't think Draco was truly evil but her friends did, and their opinion did count for something right now, considering she didn't even know what was going on around her lately.

"What rumours?" Draco's eyes narrowed.

"Somebody claimed I tried to attack Alecto Carrow in Harry's name and she beat me to a pulp - me and my friends" Hermione didn't know how all of this was flowing out of her mouth so easily, "Luna told me about it. I was about to tell Blaise to go away when I fainted… Guess I didn't realise how much pain I was in".

Draco sat there, looking at her with suspicion in his eyes while Hermione's heart rate was going 500 miles an hour. Finally he looked away as if he accepted this version, but Hermione could tell he definitely didn't believe it for a second. Hermione quickly looked over to the wall and checked the time; 11.24pm. Time for an excuse, she thought suddenly.

"Common room's all yours, I'm off to bed" Hermione picked up her textbook, "But I haven't been sleeping lately so I might get up during the night… Do you know when you're gonna be done here?" she asked innocently. Obviously she had to get out before midnight but she knew she couldn't leave if Draco saw her, he would be far too suspicious then.

"I think I'll go to bed early too" Draco replied after slightly hesitation.

"Okay" Hermione forced a strained smile. She turned to leave, feeling Draco's eyes never leave her body as she walked to her bedroom and went inside. Hermione threw her textbook on her bed and went to her cupboard, searching at the very bottom. She pulled out a black wooden box and where a lock should be was a blank piece of black metal.

Hermione pressed her index finger to the black piece of metal and the wooden box clicked open. She glanced back at her door and opened it up, pulling out a dagger, a stake, a crossbow, thick metal chains, hand cuffs she had bought in the Muggle world, several vials of different colored liquids, a red jeweled amulet and the Invisibility Cloak Harry had left behind for her, before he ran off with Ron. Hermione thought briefly that if Draco was still in the common room when she had to leave she could just wear the Invisibility Cloak but when the portrait door mysteriously opened by itself Draco would get more suspicious and go look for her. And when he didn't find her…

Hermione shuddered at the thought of another run in with Alecto Carrow. Or worse. Snape. Anger and rage began to boil in her veins when she thought about that low-life. She shook her head and grabbed her messenger bag, shoving all of her offensive weapons inside and closing it over. People thought she was unprepared? Hardly. Hermione couldn't remember a time when she didn't carry weapons with her and instantly that thought saddened her. Hermione put her black box away and sat on her bed, checking her watch; 11.50pm.

Time to go.

Hermione slung her bag over her body, made sure her wand was in her left boot like it always was and peeked out of her room, seeing the common room in darkness. Happiness washed over her when she figured Draco must have gone to bed. The coast was clear. She slipped out, careful not to make a noise on the floorboards and tiptoed to the portrait door. She pulled out the Invisibility Cloak and flung it round her head and the rest of her body. She opened the portrait door, quickly stepped out and closed it behind her, making sure nobody had seen anything. The corridors were quiet and uninviting.

Hermione took a deep breath and began to make her way to the North Tower, unaware that a figure had sat in the darkness of the common room, in the armchair, silently still and had watched her departure. Letting out a strained sigh, Draco Malfoy began to tap his fingers on the arm's chair.

oOo

Hermione's journey towards the North Tower had been surprisingly easy and her aim was to move swiftly and silently, trying to keep out of the way of any living person that might sense, hear or feel her. Her heart was beating so fast when she rounded the corner and saw Alecto walking by with Snape. Hermione almost stopped walking as they passed and she swear she thought Alecto looked straight at her but she carried on, wanting to get away from them as soon as possible.

Although Hogwarts was like a second home to her, the staircase leading up to the North Tower was winding and unfamiliar. She couldn't remember the last time she'd actually been there. As she reached the top, Hermione took a deep breath and put her hand on the handle, slowly turning it. As she opened the door, she could tell it was pitch black inside and instead of running away, she found herself going into the darkness, closing the door behind her.

It was so dark she could hardly see a thing. She couldn't even tell if there was another person inside the room, breathing. She thought about reaching for her wand to summon light but what if someone outside saw it and came to investigate? She'd be busted then - Invisibility Cloak or not.

"Thank you for coming" a sudden voice said out of the darkness and Hermione jumped so violently she had to cover her own mouth to stop the almost-scream that rose in the pit of her throat. Several candles suddenly became lit and Hermione's eyes widened when she saw Blaise Zabini standing there, holding his wand. Instinctively Hermione grabbed her wand from her boot and straightened, taking the Invisibility Cloak off her.

Time for show down.

"You have about 23.4 seconds to explain what the hell is going on" Hermione said calmly, keeping her eyes on the movement of his hands and his wand.

"I knew you'd figure out my riddle" Blaise said, smiling slightly "Sorry for being so cryptic but if anyone found out I needed to talk to you I'd be executed".

"Charming" Hermione smiled sarcastically.

"I'll just get straight to the point" Blaise continued, "The writing that was on the wall, about Dumbledore's Army… Is it true?".

Hermione's eyes narrowed into slits, "Excuse me? Did Alecto put you up to this? She couldn't make us confess in person so she thought she'd send someone to do her dirty work?".

"What?" Blaise frowned, "No of course not! I'm genuinely interested… I want to join you, and your friends".

Hermione looked incredulous, horrified and shocked, all in one expression. She wanted to slap herself and try absorb his words rationally but at the same time she honestly couldn't believe what he was saying, no matter how much more decent he looked than the other Slytherins.

"You want to what?" Hermione put her hand on her hip, frowning with suspicion, "How do I know this isn't some kind of trick? You are a Slytherin after all".

"I certainly didn't think prejudice was your thing, Hermione" Blaise raised an elegant eyebrow.

"It's not, Blaise. But learning from past experiences is. For example, the relentless abuse I received for being Muggle-born" Hermione replied with more fire and sting in her words.

"I'm not justifying that, Hermione" Blaise stepped forwards and Hermione took one step back, "But by assuming all Slytherins are evil, you're showing the same prejudice you once received and if everyone is so busy passing it back to one another, how can anything change?".

Hermione looked up at him again, frowning. She never thought she would hear a Slytherin say those kinds of words to her. But reality set back in. "Wait a minute! Why do you even want to join D.A? And that's not a confirmation that it still exists, I mean that would be crazy".

"Doubtful" Blaise sighed, "What's crazy is the life we're all living! It's not just me, Hermione! Most Slytherins don't have what it takes to be a Death Eater, and it's soon gonna be my turn to prove myself to the Dark Lord! I can't do it, I can't live this life, always in fear for my family, my safety! I'm not evil, I'm not even a little bit evil! When the Dark Lord discovers this I'm dead, and so is my family. It's horrible and dark and depressing and anyone who chooses to live this life is insane".

Hermione's thoughts drifted back to Draco and she looked up at Blaise, wondering when she had forgotten that Slytherins were also human beings, capable of many emotions. By the look of pain in his eyes, she could tell he loathed how trapped his life was, at least.

"Look, if D.A was still alive, we could work together within the school to get information and try and sabotage them at crucial moments" Blaise added, "If someone doesn't do something now, it may be too late later on".

"I feel your pain, Blaise" Hermione walked slowly to the window and looked out it and then turning away "…But…".

"But?" Blaise looked desperate, "What can I do to prove I'm telling the truth? Truth spell?".

Hermione was about to reply but the North Tower door suddenly burst open and while Blaise took a defensive position, Hermione just stood there, eyebrows raised as she looked across the room to Ginny, Neville and Luna.

"You're late" Hermione said sarcastically.

"I thought I was meeting you alone" Blaise said to Hermione, keeping his wand up.

"I told my friends, sorry" Hermione shrugged, taking off her bag and putting it on one of the tables.

"How did you know we would follow you?" Ginny frowned, as Luna closed the door behind them.

"It's you guys" Hermione gave them a look, "I don't need to see into the future to know you were going to follow me".

"Can we get back to what we talking about?" Blaise interrupted.

"Yeah just a minute Slytherin" Neville snapped, turning to Hermione, "You came here, to meet, god knows who, alone, without any protection except your wand? Do you have a death wish or something?".

Hermione flicked open her messengers bag and pulled out the Invisibility Cloak, "Invisibility Cloak… Stake, dagger, crossbow" she noted her things, taking them out of her bag "Chains, handcuffs, amulet that alerts you to evil and… these little babies" she pulled out the vials last.

"Wow" Ginny looked surprised "What are they?".

"The red one starts fire" Hermione put them on the table, "The blue one freezes anything for about an hour or too and the green one induces swelling of the stomach and sickness. I had it all planned out. While he's vomiting I make my escape".

"Why the stake?" Neville asked randomly "They are no vampires in Hogwarts" he picked it up and felt it's sharp tip.

"It was a two for one offer" Hermione snapped.

"You were really going to set me on fire?" Blaise spoke again, looking at the vials.

"Yeah" Hermione shrugged, "And I still haven't decided if I should use it or not" she turned to Ginny, Neville and Luna, "Blaise wants to join D.A".

"What?" Neville cried, turning to look at him, "It's a trap! I knew it from the beginning! It's a bloody trap! Those sneaky conniving-".

"I can prove my intentions are only good!" Blaise interrupted him. "Look I didn't ask for this life and I don't want it. I at least thought you of all people would understand" he turned to Hermione "Someone needs to do something, soon. So, I'm willing to prove my intentions".

Neville rolled his eyes and folded his arms.

"I will make the Unbreakable Vow with Hermione" Blaise announced and everyone in the room felt a definite change of shock in the air.

"Isn't that a bit much?" Ginny winced, "Can't we do a Charm or truth spell or something?".

"We could" Blaise shrugged "But how do you know my 'dark' magic won't intercept it? The Unbreakable Vow cannot be messed with, by good or dark magic, The Unbreakable is solid magic, it is what it is. It's is the only way you'll ever be able to trust me… all of you".

"What if Voldemort has learned how to intercept the Unbreakable Vow with your dark magic?" Neville asked angrily.

"He can't" Hermione hadn't taken her eyes off of Blaise since he announced his idea "It's like Blaise said, The Unbreakable Vow can't be touched or effected, by any magic. It is what it is. The Bonder would be someone else, not Blaise, not Voldemort".

"I don't know" Luna began in her quiet usually cheery voice "I think Mr Zabini is telling us the truth".

Blaise offered Luna an appreciative smile and turned back to Hermione, who was still staring at him. He is actually drop dead serious, Hermione thought soberly, no pun intended… There was something about the way his eyes twinkled with honesty and Hermione found herself desperately wanting to believe just his own word but, it wasn't just her life at stake - and she had to be sure. No idiot would make an Unbreakable Vow unless they had a death wish, right?

"Let's do it. Neville, you can be the Bonder" Hermione set her jaw straight and moved towards Blaise, who did the same "Are you sure you want to do this?".

"Yes" Blaise found warmth in his smile, despite the situation. He held out his arm and they intertwined their hands.

Neville raised his wand up above their joined hands and took a deep breath, still feeling uneasy. Suddenly a tongue of snake-like light began to wrap around their linked hands.

"Do you, Blaise Zabini, swear that you only want to join the D.A because you want to stop the Dark Lord?".

"I swear" Blaise replied.

"Do you swear that those intentions will stay that way? No matter what may happen?" Neville continued.

"I swear" Blaise replied again.

"Do you swear to do everything in your power to help Hermione and the rest of the D.A in our efforts to thwart the Dark Lord?" Neville pressed on.

"I swear" Blaise repeated. As this continued, the light that was wrapped around their hands began to glow brighter.

"Do you swear to tell no one of the D.A's existence, it's members or it's plans?" Neville's voice had leveled now.

"I swear" Blaise nodded.

"Do you swear to only discuss D.A's plans with it's trusted members?" Neville added.

"I swear" Blaise's voice had a finality about it that made Hermione take a deep breath. They weren't kids anymore.

Neville looked at Ginny, Hermione and Luna, to see if there was anything else and when they all nodded, he brought his wand back above their joint hands and the light slowly disappeared.

Hermione and Blaise pulled their own arm back and looked at each other awkwardly.

"I take it that's confirmation the D.A exists" Blaise joked, referencing Hermione's stark tone earlier.

"Yes" Hermione smiled warmly at him, "Thank you, I know it's not something to be done lightly".

"I'm not worried, I meant every word" Blaise watched her pack up her things into her bag.

"Should we schedule meetings?" Ginny suddenly asked, "We can't do it in the Room of Requirement because that room is guarded like a hawk, we can't sit openly at lunch together… Where are we gonna meet?".

"I think I might have an idea" Hermione suddenly grinned, "One your probably not going to like".