Twenty-Three. Hermione
My body was momentarily lost of all feelings. The first thing I felt was a drop of rain land on my head as I knelt there, in the grass, staring at the point where Draco was just a minute ago. I blinked as the rain ran down my face into my eyes and looked down at my muddy hands as sheets of rain began to fall around me.

Was this it? Was I back to where I was just a few months ago? Not knowing who I really was, loving someone who was under the control of the most evil person to ever walk the earth, worrying night and day whether he was still alive. I used to wonder whether he would join the good side, now I'll worry he has returned to the bad because if he doesn't, he's refusal will result in he death. No doubt.

Realisation hit me as hard as I heard heavy running footsteps approaching me. I didn't look up, I knew who it was.

"Shit," Ron shouted as he stopped next to me, closely followed by Harry. "There gone mate, how the hell did they know he was here?" Ron, clearly oblivious to my condition, turned to Harry. When I didn't hear an answer from him I looked up. He was staring at me, pity all over his face.

I cringed, I wished he would stop looking at me and shaking his head. "For God's sake Harry! Would you stop looking at me like that?" I could feel my anger build and took in deep breaths before retuning my gaze to my hands.

Harry's feet disappeared from my view and retreated back to the shed. Ron let out an annoyed Huff before following him.

I had no emotions at that moment, I tried letting them all out because I knew that if I never, soon it would come as more of a shock. But the more I tried to release my feelings, the angrier I got. Everything that had happened in the last half hour washed over me and I exploded.

I jumped to my feet with no hesitation and almost flew through the shed door. Harry and Ron spun round ready for more deatheaters but relaxed when they saw it was me, although they shouldn't have.

I stood in the doorway staring at them both; I could feel my eyes burning into them. "Do you not realise what you have just done?" I asked, momentarily keeping my cool. "You have just possible handed our last and only hope of wining this war over to Voldermort on a plate. You don't care that he was captured do you?"

"No," said Harry with a coldness in his voice that I had never heard before. "They'll kill him to. He'll wish we'd have taken him by the time they're done with him, I bet." I laughed; it was the only way to suppress my anger and pain. It was either laugh or cry and scream.

"You haven't worked it out yet have you?" I asked shaking my head, still laughing like a mad women. I had still not had the time to tell them about my talk with Lupin and Tonks, well, not had the time, and forgot. "I spoke with Lupin and Tonks a while ago. By the way, they said they'd stop by shortly but it's been a while. Anyway," I continued like an evil villain revealing her plans to her prisoner. "They let me in on a bit of useful information; information about Draco." They both stared at me, hanging on my every word. "They were told by two deatheaters that their plan is to make Draco the next Voldermort." They opened their mouths in shock. "Funny, isn't it?"

"I can't believe you Hermione," Harry repeated again.

"Oh Harry, you're getting awfully boring. I know; you can't believe I'd fall in love with the man that killed Dumbledore." I dropped the madness in my voice and suddenly became very serious. If there was any hope that I could save Draco, I would need the orders help. "But he's changed; I swear he has Harry, Ron." I looked at them both desperately.

Harry carried on shaking his head and I began to cry, finally my emotions leaving me. "You have to listen to me. We have to save him. Please! I love him Harry." I aimed this at him, if any of them would listen, it would be him. But he carried on shaking his head.

"No, I've got over the fact that you love him Hermione. But do you want to know what I can't understand?" I looked at him, pleading with my eyes. "How you could still love him when Lupin and Tonks told you that he was to become the next Voldermort!" He screamed this last sentence as he flung himself around and punched his clenched fist into the wall.

I didn't flinch, neither did Ron. We were ready for this outburst of anger; we always were. "Harry," I started softly. "I didn't know who he was to begin with. He was just this boy that I was writing to."

He squinted his eyes at me, "how could you have been so stupid, you're Hermione Granger you'd never make a mistake like that."

"I know Harry, but when I met up with him, he was disguised as someone else. Trust me, when I found out who he was, I went mad. I was ready to tell you all, but even then I was prepared to fight for his life. I could tell even then, when I was heartbroken at having thinking he had messed around with my feelings that he had changed. He proved it to me Harry."

"How?!" Ron shouted from besides me, I had almost forgotten he was there. "By telling you he loved you? Do you really think he loved you Hermione? He made your life at school hell since your first day; he made all our days hell. He purposely set out to hurt you, he hates you Hermione, and he was using you to get in with the order."

"You're wrong." I said shaking my head. "He loves me!" I shouted in his face.

"No!" He screamed back at me, just as loud. "I love you!" With this he grabbed my face, pulling me into him and forcing his lips onto mine. I struggled against him, but he was too strong. When he finally let me go I fell to the ground, shaking.

Harry slid down the wall until he was sat down and slammed his head hard against the wall. Ron stood, staring at me, also shaking. Slow tears falling from his eyes. He was the first to move; he made his way over to my side and sat down next to me, pulling my head into his chest as I sobbed.

"I'm sorry," he choked into my hair. I nodded into his chest; it was all I could do.

Twenty-One. Draco
don't do it…!!

"I said bow!"

"NO" I screamed, the words left my mouth and instantly the light, airy felling left me and reality surrounded me.

Thirty or so deatheaters stood all around me, they had been laughing at my torture, now they were silent at my disobedience.

"Well, well," came a slimy voice which I recognised as my fathers. "Draco," he said, with a tutting voice, "I thought I taught you to always obey your superiors." Everyone laughed. I lifted my head so that I could look him in the face.

"You are not my superior." I began. "You're dirt on the bottom of my shoe," I spat in his face.

A back hand across my face tried to put me in my place but I just laughed. I could do nothing else. My wand was with my father and my hands were tied up to a cross, I didn't know where I was, I had never been there before.

"How dare you laugh at me," he hissed into my face. I felt the roughness of a wand under my chin and I refused to break eye contact, trying my hardest to use legilimens, but to on avail.

A curse was on the tip of his tongue before the door flew open, and my nightmare began.

"Drop your wand Lucius," came a voice which sent shivers down my spin, and also my fathers as I saw the wince on his face.

"Yes master," he said shakily as he bowed low to the ground.

"Coward!" I shouted at him and instantly wands from all directions pointed at me.

A high pitched laugh came from the figure which was gliding ghost-like towards me. A sear in my arm made a whimper escape my mouth and I heard sniggers from the other deatheaters, who lowered their wands.

"My faithful servants, you do not want to be pointing your wands at the boy who will soon be controlling them." The room went deathly silent and I let out a laugh which I couldn't hold back. I knew I shouldn't have been acting that way in my situation, but I was sure I was going to die anyway.

"Do I amuse you Draco?" He asked looking straight at my eyes. I looked anywhere but back at his and found myself taking in his disgusting features. When I was working under him I would always look at my feet in a sign of "respect".

"I asked you if…"

"I know what you asked me." I said back, coolly.

A hissed murmur ran through the crowd. Voldermort laughed.

"Perfect," he said, sounding surprisingly happy. What was he up to? "You are not the typical Slytherin, Draco." He said smiling at me, waiting for an answer, what did he want?

"Meaning?" I asked, cockily. He laughed again, that high, cold, laugh.

"Meaning, that you have the qualities I was hoping for. Not cowardly like your father." He turned to him. "Isn't that right Lucius?"

"Of course master." He answered, bowing. It made me feel sick to see him sucking up to that pathetic excuse for a man.

"See what I mean?" He asked.

"I'm not doing it." I snapped at him. "I refuse to be like you. I haven't become my father and there is no way I will become you."

"I'm afraid you have no choice." He answered his voice suddenly stern. "I am already going through the process."

"What do you mean?" I asked, suddenly quite worried. I though he would try and turn me, was he going to…No?

"You see Draco," he exclaimed. "I am getting weaker, as I'm sure your dear friend Hermione has filled you in on. In fact, I believe you have helped in this matter if I am correct." He smiled at me but I could still see the anger in his eyes. That stupid snake deserved it! He ran a long bony finger down his wand. "I need to be stronger, I cannot survive like this. Members of the order have been made to believe that when I am gone I plan for you to become the next Dark Lord." Evil laugh. "They should have known better; like I would willingly hand my power over to someone else." He said almost bitterly. "So you see my plan Draco, is to transfer parts of me, into you. I need you to have certain qualities because you will still be alive, I will just take over most of your body. It makes sense for me to use you; you're still so young and inexperienced your brain will barely be able to fight back against me." He said this as if it was a simple matter that happened all the time. As if I was going to roll over and let him go ahead with this.

"You're wrong; I will be able to fight back against you!" I shouted at him. "I will not let you do this!" I said, almost trying to convince myself rather than him.

Loud roaring laughs emerged from the deatheaters, lead by Voldermort's bone chilling cackle. "Sadly, you have no say in the matter," he whispered to me through the laughs so that only I could hear. "It can go ahead with no effort from you. And do you want to know the first thing we are going to do?" My eyes opened with horror at the thought of the terrible things I would have to witness, I knew what he was about to say. "Rid this world of mudblood's, starting; with your dirty little girlfriend."

Twenty-Four. Hermione
"I'm telling you he's changed!" I screamed at Harry and Ron as I was held back by Moody and Lupin. "Stop trying to get them to turn against him!"

"We don't need to convince them to turn against him, they're already against him!" Harry shouted back, equally as loud.

I screamed. I screamed as loudly as I could and I only stopped when I heard a mimicking of it. I shut my mouth and watched Mrs Weasley as she exasperatedly tended to Mrs Black.

Eventually Harry, Ron and I had left the shed and apperated to Grimmauld Place; still the head quarters for the order. On arriving Harry and Ron made no haste in telling everyone about how they had found Draco, who had been taken by the deatheaters. Also adding that there was no doubt he was now going to join them, adding worry to everyone else's list of downers.

"Hermione, you have to keep it down," Lupin attempted. "Mrs Black hasn't screamed so much in one day ever, and what if someone outside hears you?"

I gave him a deathly glare before opening my mouth, fully intending to scream again but with no sound leaving my lips. I looked over at Ron who had just lowered his wand and proceeded to make himself a cup of tea, offering one to everyone else bar me. Of course.

I frantically mimed words to Moody and Lupin trying to get them to understand but they just shook their heads stating that they didn't understand me. Why weren't they lifting this spell? It was blatantly obvious who they believed. Defeated, I left the kitchen determined to find someone who would listen, or lip read.

The house seemed completely empty apart from the idiots in the kitchen and so I decided I would go to the library to try and sort out my problems. It always helped in the past.

The huge windows let in the bright summer light so I walked past Tonks completely unaware of her presence. "Wotcha 'Mione." She shrieked as I turned to find her stood behind me, and trod on her foot.

I mimed that I was sorry and a tear fell from my eyes; finally, someone I could talk to. I pointed to my mouth in a successful attempt at getting her to lift the spell, which she kindly did, and motioned for her to join me on the settee.

I very quickly re-accounted everything that had happened. She sat in silence the whole time, her mouth and eyes wide in shock. Only when I finished did she make a noise, which was a small sigh.

"Tonks!" I shouted, startling her. She seemed like she was in some sort of daydream and I needed her to help me. She looked at me sorrowfully; I knew what was coming.

"I'm sorry Hermione but the boys are right." I let out a deflated breath; she was my last hope. "What he did to Dumbledore was unforgivable." That was it; did they not think I hated him for killing Dumbledore? Did they think I didn't care?

"For goodness sake!" I shouted out. "Why do you all seem to think that I did not care about Dumbledore? I cared just as much as the rest of you. I wish I could say that a few months ago I would have agreed to what you are saying but I can't. I am not saying this only because I love him and I don't want to see him dead; I have always been willing to fight for his life. I knew I would be the one doing so, and I am not failing at it!" I threw my arms up as I stormed out of the room only to find the door close in my face.

Angrily I turned around to face a very confused looking Tonks. I shrugged my shoulders at her and put my hands on my hips, waiting for an explanation. All the while hoping she understood.

"It's like a personal prophecy," she whispered so that I had to move closer to her. "People involved in a prophecy feel it has to be followed. You feel you have to follow this to a stage where you are so deep into it, that you can't stop yourself." She looked at me, her head tilted to the side. What was she talking about?

"If you hadn't felt that you had to help him when he revealed himself to you, would you have turned him in straight away?" She asked.

I pondered on the question. That would mean that we didn't feel each others feelings also. "I guess so but where is this leading?"

"And because he revealed himself to you you fell in love with him?"

"Well, kind of. It also helped that I liked him when he was at school. But that also links into the fact that I could feel his feelings; had I not, I would have thought he was just being an arrogant jerk." I got it; I knew what she was on about. If she thought what I thought she thought, she understood!

"So you do love him," finally what I'd been trying to tell them. "Everyone thought he had you under some sort of spell." I cried, tears spilled from my eyes. I hoped to God that she believed me now because I was finally beginning to relax slightly.

"Listen Hermione," she said to me in a hushed voice very quickly. "I think I understand. You're a clever girl and I hope you know what you're talking about. No ones going to be happy about this but…" She paused, say it! "I'm going to help you." Yes! I cried even more. I was hysterical and my body shook uncontrollably as Tonks slowly began to calm me down.

"We'll have to leave right now," she whispered.

"Of course, but why are you so eager?" I asked curiously.

"Haven't you wondered why no ones here Hermione?" She asked with a slight smirk.

I looked at her and shock ran through my body, no way!

"They're pretty certain they've found it and when you opened the door to come in here I was pretty sure I heard pops from downstairs. They could be back any minute now so when they come back, we have to be ready. Hermione, the wars about to begin."