A/N: I'm so sorry for taking so long to update. I was depressed with my writing for a while and decided not to write. (in other words I got writer's block and it doesn't look like it's gonna go away) So excuse me if this chapter sucks. I honestly squeezed my brain to write every word. Hope you like it. Many thanks to the all the people at school who supported me and this utterly depressing (not to forget badly written) fanfic of mine from the beginning and made me feel like a real writer. You know who you are guys. (for all the people out there who actually care, their names are mentioned in my previous chapters.) Thanks to all the people who reviewed: rebelwilla, kitsune tails, silidons, molly, this-recurring-dream, min, and lily1121 for putting me in her faves. You guys make all the trouble worthwhile. Ok, I've stalled enough. On with the story then………
Chapter 6
Draco stumbled down the dark forest path, gasping for breath. His wand was out in front of him, giving him what faint light it could, lightening the darkness. He stopped for a moment, leaning on a tree. Suddenly, his acute hearing caught footsteps carefully treading the ground. He crept towards the sound, his eyes glinting dangerously. Between the branches, the moonlight fell on a cloaked stranger, one with his head covered with a hood and his face covered with a black mask so Draco couldn't see who it was. Draco didn't know why he was chasing the stranger through the dark woods; he just knew that he had to. He walked his way softly, making sure he was well hidden behind the trees, watching him as he pulled out something that glimmered in the moonlight. Draco's heart dropped when he saw it was a sharp dagger covered in blood. For some reason that made him all the more determined to get to the stranger and unmask him. He was getting closer…closer…the mysterious man was no more than a meter away from Draco when…
Craaaaaack! The man jumped, and starting looking furtively around him. He stuffed the dagger into his pocket and pulled his wand out. Draco cursed under his breath; he had stepped on a twig and broken it. Damn my eternal bad luck.
Deciding quickly, Draco was in front of the stranger, his wand out and pointed straight at the man's heart in one swift movement. The stranger's dark eyes, the only thing showing from his mask, flickered with fear for a moment, then turned into a mocking glare.
"Who are you?!" Draco asked; his voice menacingly low, threateningly calm. The stranger cackled evilly. "Who are you?!" Draco repeated, this time louder and angrier. The stranger cackled again. "I killed her Mudblood baby, the filthy piece of dung." The stranger hissed, his voice oozing with venom. Draco's face flushed, and he leapt on the man with a growl, pushing him to the ground. His strong hands quickly secured themselves on the man's neck, his wand forgotten. "You filthy son of a…you git, you will pay for that! You will pay for that!" The man's cocky attitude quickly evaporated, and fear was evident in his eyes. He wildly groped for his wand but Draco was too strong for him. Draco stopped strangling the man for a moment to pull off the mask. It was…it was Roger! Draco stood stunned for a moment. Roger used Draco's moment of shock to pull out the bloody dagger out of the folds in his cloak. He pushed Draco and raised the dagger…All of a sudden; Draco was thrown away. A hooded shape was in his place on the floor, a…a woman, Draco realized with a jolt. She had a beautiful face, a face Draco knew so well…yet he couldn't remember who it was. Her chocolate brown eyes were rimmed with long, beautiful lashes, and her face had a sort of…regal air to it, pride and honesty showing in her eyes. But as Draco peered closer, he noticed she had dark circles under her eyes, and her pride seemed to be broken. She also seemed to have a bit of a bump where her flat stomach should be. She's pregnant, Draco realized. Then suddenly his heart plummeted to his boots. Hermione. The figure Roger was now towering above was Hermione. Draco felt his whole body go numb for a second.
"You Mudblood! You're going to die!" Roger hissed in Hermione's ear. Draco thrashed around; trying to free himself from the invisible wall that suddenly sprung to separate Hermione from Draco. He could still see everything and hear every word, but for some strange reason, he couldn't reach the two figures standing in front of him. He watched as Hermione struggled against the bonds that snaked around her body with battered and bruised arms and feet. Her whole body looked like as if it had been pricked by a thousand knives. Tears fell on his face, as he felt Hermione's pain. She looked at him pleadingly… Draco watched Roger mutter some words under his breath in a constant stream. Incantation, Hermione's brain told Draco. He was hearing her thoughts? The dagger shone for a moment with a sickly green glow, then turned back into its bloodied state. Draco realized with a start that the dark red fluid on the dagger wasn't blood, no it was too dark. It was sort of reddish black. Draco watched as a drop fell from the dagger and dropped onto a leaf. The green leaf immediately shriveled up to nothing but a pitiful yellow thing; as if the fluid had sucked out all the life from the leaf. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. Draco struggled against the invisible barrier. He had to help Hermione!
"You know too much. Your use is over. I don't need you anymore. It won't be like anyone would care about a thickheaded Mudblood like you, will they? Then I will fulfill the wish of my mother, without any of your meddling." Roger hissed, spitting in Hermione's face.
He raised the dagger high above his head and brought it down, directly on the bump, Hermione's baby…..
"NOOOOO!!!…." Draco woke up, his whole body sweating. He panted heavily. Looking at the darkness around him, he sighed. It was all a dream. A nightmare more like. Where am I? This isn't my bed. He groped in the darkness for his wand. "Lumos." Draco muttered, causing the wand to light up and enabled him to see his surroundings. Oh, right, I'm at Harry's. He rubbed his head, tousling his hair even more.
"Master Draco is wanting anything sir?" Tillie, one of Draco's house elves and the eldest and most faithful of the lot, was standing over Draco, her round face shining with anxiety. Draco backed away, as she had sneaked up out of nowhere carrying a candle. "Yes, Tillie. Bring me a glass of the Calming Draught. I sure to hell need it." Draco had brought Tillie with him when he went with Tonks to fix up one of the rooms at the Manor for Hermione's safe keeping. The elf nodded obediently and exited the room. Draco wiped his glistening brow, and put a hand to his furiously beating heart. He didn't know what had happened and his brain was mixed up. He had went to sleep thinking about how to catch Roger, and his mind had flitted momentarily to the case, and he remembered wondering if Roger and the Muggleborn serial killer was one person before nodding of to sleep. But what did his dream mean? He remembered running through a forest, following a masked and hooded figure, and finally seeing Hermione. The last part was what had really freaked him out. He had seen Hermione, crushed and helpless, battling the pain bravely, and couldn't do a single thing. A single tear trailed its way down his pale, handsome face and he wiped at his face furiously. He shook his head. Focus, Draco. You can't afford to lose your concentration. Think, Roger dead. Roger must die. Roger must go.
"Here's potion sir. Master is wanting anything else sir?" Tillie appeared, with the much needed Calming Draught potion. Draco grabbed it and swallowed it in one whole gulp. He immediately felt its soothing effect on his messed up nerves. "No thank you Tillie. You may go now." Draco dismissed Tillie with a regal wave of his hand. Tillie bowed low, and scuttled out of the room noiselessly.
Draco, now calmed down, closed his eyes and drifted to a dreamless sleep, his mind numbed by the effects of the potion…
Tick tick tick…tick tick tick…tick tick…
"Ohgotobloodyhell." Draco mumbled from between the sheets and pillows. An owl was tapping the glass window, patiently waiting for Draco to pay for the newspaper it held.
Tick tick tick…tick tick tick…
"OhforGodssakesomeonepaydabloodybird…" The effects of the Calming potion seemed to be wearing off and Draco had one hell of a temper in the morning. He opened his eyes a little to be blinded by the bright sunlight streaming from the window. That's odd; the l---- was usually delivered at dawn. "Tillie!" Draco raised his head a little. Where was that blasted elf? "Tillie!"
"Yes master Malfoy." Suddenly Tillie showed up from nowhere, giving Draco a near heart attack.
"For the last time, do NOT do that!" Draco exclaimed. What a lovely day this is turning out to be. He thought wryly.
"Yes Master Malfoy, Tillie means no harm. Tillie will insure next time to not surprise Master Malfoy."
"To hell you will. Now I want you to pay that blasted owl. Is breakfast ready? What time is it?" Draco's stomach grumbled. "And bring me another glass of the Calming Draught, I have a feeling I'm going to need it."
"Yes sir. Right away Master. But is Master sure he wants Tillie to bring him another potion? Tis' not good to drink two glasses of it in a day master surely knows. And breakfast is ready. It's half past seven, Master Draco."
"Yes I'm not an idiot! Just get me the blasted potion now, know one needs to hear your views on potions! Now get out of my sight!" Draco snapped. The last thing he needed now was a house-elf telling him what to do! And Calming Draughts didn't take away the pain, they just numbed them temporarily.
Tillie vanished as stealthily as she had come in.
Wait a minute, 7:30? Hmmm…I had something at eight, but what could that be? Oh that blasted elf, where's my potion?
Draco stood up, shaking his head. He was wearing nothing other than a pair of black silk boxers. He felt a full blown headache on the way, the reality of what he had dreamed yesterday had hit him rather hard after such a long time of numbness. He dragged himself to the bathroom. Washing his face, he paused for a second to see his reflection. His pale skin had a gray tinge to it, and his stormy gray eyes had a haunted look in them, a haunted look that hadn't been there yesterday. He dried off his face and stepped outside.
"Here is your potion Master Draco!" Piped the tiny elf, carrying a goblet full of something steaming. Good bye headache. "Thank you Tillie. You can leave now." Tillie scurried out of the room as fast as her legs could.
Without a second to waste, Draco had drunk the contents of the goblet in one gulp. He waited for a few minutes for the potion's effect to kick through. Ahhhh…there it is. Oh what a marvelous morning! In a few seconds, Draco had forgotten the potion and the dreams already… Grabbing his robe from the closets, he went down stairs, following the smell of food. Delicious! I haven't any food for a while. Draco thought in his carefree attitude. He jumped the last steps of the stairs. He could hear sounds of a thud, and angry voices.
"No Harry stop!!" Suddenly a black blur pushed Draco aside. It seemed to be heading for the door. Draco scratched his head, completely unfazed. Ginny, clad only in a skimp nightgown and a robe thrown hurriedly on it, ran after the blur. Oooh look at that… Draco unabashedly thought. He hummed to himself. Walking down towards the kitchen, he caught a glimpse of what was happening in the front hall. He stopped, a bit curious and edged towards the scuffle. A red-faced Harry was standing there yelling his brains out, while an equally harassed Ginny tried to reason with him, even though her face was the same color as her flaming red hair, and she was shaking from the rage. Dobby had blocked the front door. Draco did a double take on the scene in front of him, and chuckled quietly to himself. He didn't dare to laugh out loud, even in his calm state he knew that the angry couple in front of him was not to be crossed when angry. But he couldn't help himself; he burst out laughing. Harry was in his boxers! A green one with snitches zooming around…Two angry faces turned to him.
"What is your problem?" Ginny snapped; this close to hexing Draco, who was now rolling on the floor. Harry just took a deep breath.
"Hahaha…green boxers…hahaha…snitches…red hair…" Draco spluttered incoherently. Harry and Ginny were distracted from their heated argument for a moment to watch Draco, a confused expression on their faces.
"Draco, snap out of it! Have you been bloody drinking?" Harry asked disgusted with him. How could he laugh when Hermione was…when Hermione was…
"I'm going to kill the son of a bitch! I'm going to kill him when I find out who he is!" Harry muttered, heading for the door again. Ginny started. "You're not going anywhere Harry! You're in your boxers for Merlin's sake!"
Meanwhile Draco had sobered up. "What are you talking about? We do know who he is." He asked.
"You know who he is! And you're just standing there?" Harry asked his voice a bit strangled. Ginny looked at him in a weird way.
"Of course I know who he is. You do too." Draco shook his head at the two expressions in front of him. Maybe they were drunk. Maybe they just forgot. Well anyway, that's not going to trouble him. Nothing could trouble him today. "Roger, you dimwits. Are you sure you're not pissed?"
"What? What has Roger got to do with all this?" Ginny asked, demanding an immediate answer.
"He's the one who attacked Hermione…blablabla?" Draco said nonchalantly.
Harry and his wife exchanged looks.
"Ok, mate now I know you're really drunk. What did you do, drink all the Fire-whiskies you could find?" Harry asked.
Ginny held his hand and guided him to the living room. She sat him one of the sofas, her compassion momentarily covering her rage. Harry softly followed, accioing himself a pair of worn jeans, now that he had come to mind and realized that he was really only in his boxers.
"Draco, I do realize that this…situation might have effected you the most, seeing as…as…you loved Hermione, but do you think getting insanely drunk is the best way to cope with it?" She asked, sounding like Mrs.Weasley. Harry pulled the jeans on, and sat, with a bare chest, his stomach muscles clenched with tension. He pulled out the DAILY WHATEVER from under him. He had brought it with him in his hurry to get to the hospital. Rereading the article that was splashed on the first page, he was oblivious to the talking session Draco was having with Ginny, where both of them were convinced that the other was drunk. Harry's brow creased as he saw the picture of a healthy, smiling Hermione wave at him. He reread the headlines yet again:
MUGGLEBORN STABBED TO NEAR DEATH.
HARRY POTTER'S (BOY-WHO-LIVED) BEST FRIEND ATTACKED!
He ground his teeth. Hermione was in danger, and here they were having a bloody therapy session. But what was really troubling Harry was who had leaked the information? He had made very specific instructions to preserve Hermione's privacy…What if Roger was at the hospital now…?
"Shut it you two!" Harry suddenly barked. "Come on we have to go to St.Mungo's now!"
Ginny looked up at Harry, and immediately knew what was on his mind. Draco on the other hand, looked unruffled. He was now reading the newspaper Harry had thrown in his frustration.
"Wicked…so Hermione's a star now? I bit she'll hate that! But won't that alert Roger that she's alive? He'll come after her now you know." Draco mentioned mildly, though somewhere deep in his mind something was niggling him. Harry watched him in disbelief ask he turned the paper. Draco would never act like this, unless…
"Draco, you haven't by any chance drunk any Calming Draughts have you?" Harry asked, watching Draco chuckle at the moving caricature on the third page.
"Yeah, a bit maybe." Draco answered offhandedly.
"How much is a bit?" Ginny asked tentatively, seeing what Harry was aiming at.
"Two full glasses I think." Draco answered.
"Two full…When?" Harry looked impatient.
"Oh, I don't know…one last night and one this morning? I had a hell of a dream, and a hell of a headache. What's it to you?" Draco answered in that same nonchalant tone. Ginny sighed. This was NOT the time for Draco to be drugged.
"Damn it Draco! You know what happens when you take two Calming draughts in less than twenty four hours better than anyone." Harry nearly yelled. It wasn't the perfect time for Draco to be in a semi-narcotic state. They had to move Hermione from St.Mungo's to Draco NOW, and it won't be any help with Draco eerily calm! The bell suddenly rang. Dobby rushed to open it. The three turned their heads and Mrs.Weasley quickly strode in, her face shining with worry, Tonks close behind. Harry nodded to Tonks and Mrs.Weasley; there wasn't the time for formalities.
"Oh what are we going to do? Charlie, Ron, and Luna are with her now. And the twins are furious for me not telling them. Everybody else understood , and Luna seems to think that I'm afflicted with Snobble Snorts, what the hell is that nobody knows, I don't know how she got to work in the department of Mysteries, and what are we going to do?!" Mrs.Weasley fretted, not stopping for breath once. It looked like she was on the verge of crying. Ginny went and hugged her mother, and Mrs.Weasley started sobbing. Tonks looked solemn.
"Harry, I put enough Aurors to protect her now, but I can't guarantee that that's enough. Edwards and Pike are working on finding the leak now, and I have sent orders to stop printing of all stories containing Hermione's name. I'm afraid we're too late though, and it's only a matter of time…"Tonks trailed away.
"We have to move her now! No number of Aurors will stop Roger. And besides, we still don't know if someone from the inside is helping him. Mum don't worry, I'll take care of Fred and George…the idiots…" Ginny tried to comfort her mum, and at the same time try to find out a solution to all this mess. Harry nodded his head at Ginny's suggestion.
"I take it that the Minister isn't too happy with me is he?" Harry asked Tonks.
"that's an understatement. He's gone ballistic."
"Well damn him. I don't care. As long as Hermione's safe, I don't care." Harry repeated firmly.
Draco lazily stood up. His sudden movement reminded everybody of his presence, and they all turned to look at him.
"Well, let's go get the girl. What are you all waiting for?" Draco commented, as if it was the easiest thing in the world.
And for once, Harry agreed with him. Grabbing his clean robes from a rack, he quickly wore them, oblivious to his shirtless state. He picked up his wand, and waited for everybody to join him. The others quickly joined him, realizing that talking and moping around about the press leak wasn't going to help Hermione one bit. But they were all surprised when Draco took the wrong turn and…
"Draco? Err… the door's here. Not there, here." Ginny pointed out, emphasizing here.
"What do you think I am? An idiot? I'm not going out in my boxers! I'll leave that to Mister Potter here." Draco leaped the stairs three at a time.
Ginny started screaming at him till the house shook. "You idiotic halfwit, you imbecile! There's no time for you have your beautifying bath! Hermione is in DANGER…D-A-N-G-E-R! Draco, come back here! His mind can't be that gone can it?" She shrieked in frustration at Harry. Tonks turned to Harry, perturbed. "He didn't overdo himself with a Calming Draught potion did he?" She asked. Harry nodded.
Ginny was still cursing Draco under her breath, while Mrs.Weasley, tear streaked, still managed to look shocked at her daughter's language even in this moment of distress. Harry, thinking quickly, came up with a plan.
"Ginny and I will Apparate to St.Mungo's with Mrs.Weasley to sort things out. Tonks wait for Draco and then go immediately to Malfoy Manor. We'll bring Hermione there. It's the only solution we have, with Draco acting weird."
Tonks nodded, accepting her part of the plan. Dobby ran up to Ginny, giving her her pants. "Thanks Dobby."
"It's Dobby's pleasure miss." He answered, his ears flapping in delight.
Ginny quickly donned them under her billowing robes and strode out of the house behind Harry, with Mrs.Weasley holding her hand.
Tonks called Tillie to her.
"Tillie, I want you get ready now, we're going back to the Manor. Help Mister Malfoy in any way you can, ad get him here in less then a minute. Do you understand? This is important. Now go!" The house-elf quickly scurried out of sight. Dobby gave Tonks a glass of water. She sighed, sifting her fingers through her mousy limp hair, no longer bubbly pink, not after…No, she willed herself. She will not remember that. Never. But her heart ached for Draco. She thought she knew how he must have been feeling, and the double intake of a calming potion proved to Tonks that she was wrong. Draco was hurting even more than she thought. But it did slow things down, Draco being in a numb state. They needed him alert, not in a tranquil, infuriating attitude. And besides, Draco will only feel the pain three times over when the potion's effects fade.
She heard a step on the stairs behind her. The subject of her thoughts was strolling down the stairs, taking his time, with an insistent Tillie impatiently pushing him from the back.
"Come Master Draco, Miss Tonks says one minute. Tillie did not do as she was asked, no, Master Draco is a minute late." Tillie muttered, trying with all her tiny body's might to get Draco to move faster. Tonks' patience was being severely tested.
"No wait; I forgot my flask of potion." Draco drawled, turning back. Tonks couldn't contain her impatience anymore.
"Draco Alexander Malfoy, get down this instant! You don't need that damned flask; it's given you enough trouble already!" Tonks ordered. Draco continued up the stairs.
"Nymphadora, I won't take too long. Just a few more seconds. I need that flask." Draco explained calmly. Tonks exploded. After all she didn't take any potion, and one her best friends' life was threatened. A moment too late…No Tonks didn't want to be a moment too late. Not again. She took the matter into her own hands.
"Tillie, go to Malfoy Manor immediately." She ordered the elf, who looked hesitantly at her master.
"Oi, who are you to order my house elf around?" Draco stated it in a tone of confusion, more than anger. Nothing could anger him at this moment.
"Tillie, go. You're not in the state to order her around yourself. Tillie, I said go!" Tillie quickly Disapparated with a tiny pop, carrying a suitcase of Draco's clothes. Tonks held out her wand. "Levicorpus!" She thought in her head. Draco, to his amusement, was lifted in to the air, held by his ankle by an invisible force.
"So, where are we going? A picnic in the park? Oh, that reminds me, I have to go to Hyde Park at eight o'clock. Think you could fly me there?" He asked.
"We're going home. And it's already eight o'clock." Tonks growled, taking care to accidentally bump his head on the door hinge.
"Hmmm… that's a shame. A whole team is out there, complete with a forensics expert, waiting for me to tell them to start investigating. Oh well, I suppose home is a good idea. The water here is freezing cold!" He shivered. Tonks smiled grimly, no a hint of humor on her face. She stepped out, and quickly walked to a car that was patiently waiting. She hopped into it, throwing Draco unceremoniously into the back seats, and revved up the engine. Pressing the invisibility button, she rose into the air, and quickly zoomed off to the direction of Draco's house. The car was experiment number two, started by Arthur Weasley, and when he died, finished by the twins, Fred and George, in memory of their father. They then gave it to their mother, and Molly and Tonks had flown to Harry's today in it. Molly didn't use it anyway, as she usually burst into tears every time she merely looked at the car. Tonks looked in the rearview mirror. Good, Draco had stopped fidgeting. Actually, he had become very somber. "This was Arthur's car wasn't it?" He asked softly.
"Yes it... was." Tonks answered, sadness filling her voice. They had lost many important people, many dear friends, in the war. Many close to the heart…
"He was a great man."
Unknown to Draco, Tonks' eyes had filled with tears. She was almost in a trance when she muttered: "Yes, yes he was…"
A/N: yawn I better go to sleep. It's 3 am in the morning and I can barely see Xavier anymore.(Xavier is my faithful laptop. It's also known as Kudai. Weird names I know, one of the reasons I chose those two names in the first place. Weird names for a weird laptop owned by a weirder person) Brrr…I'm freezing cold. See what I do for all you people? I forfeit my beauty sleep, my warmth, and my sanity to write this for you. What is that I hear? You want to repay me for all the trouble I went through to write this stuff? Easy, just press the ok button at the bottom of the page.(in other words, REVIEW please!) I really do appreciate all your comments and inputs. Oh, and I need suggestions with what to do with Roger. Adieus people! Till the next chapter then!
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