I know that this chapter is late and I apologize! Please don't hate me! lol. I had a very big assignment due in my college class last week so that pushed off my writing for this story until this week. Also, a shout out to AnnabelleGreer for pointing out that if my story took place before DH than Hermione wouldn't have been tortured by Bellatrix yet. I appreciate that. I hadn't realized that plot hole so from now on I'll try to find those holes before posting. As it is, just forget that one and we'll continue on like it makes perfect sense. lol. And finally I feel the need to add that this story will be getting a rating change very soon because the chapters will be getting more graphic. Hermione is going dark. Sorry if that upsets some of the readers, but that's what's gonna happen. With that said, Read and Review please!
-SilverSlytherinWitch
Hermione smiled as Draco gave her the lilies. He was her best friend and he always knew just how to cheer her up. Her seventh birthday would be amazing because she knew Draco wouldn't rest until he was positive that she had the best birthday ever. Hermione gasped as she felt pain in her arm.
The memory faded as the pain in her arm brought her back to reality. Hermione had been reliving memories of her and Draco while she slept. It helped to ease the pain of her situation. She could survive anything as long as she remembered that she did have a family, and people who loved her. They would save her. She just had to hold on long enough to allow them too. Hermione moaned and rolled over to stretch her damaged arm across the stone floor. She sighed in relief as the cold seeped into her skin helping to ease the inflammation.
Ginny and Fred watched their best friend quietly. She had alternated between screaming and laughing in her sleep last night. The noise had kept both of them awake. Fred had woken Hermione up a couple of times after he couldn't take her screaming anymore. Hermione had crawled away from them clutching her arm and crying. Neither of them had been able to look at her arm. She consistently refused to show it to them.
"Hermione are you awake?" Ginny whispered from across the cell.
Hermione sighed, "Yeah."
"When do you think they'll come?" Fred asked standing to stretch his legs.
"Soon," Hermione answered rubbing her damaged arm, "They will have planned the raid and be executing it any time now."
Ginny slumped against the wall, "I hope so. We need to get out of here."
"We will," Fred assured her as he paced back and forth in the cell.
"Give it time guys," Hermione reasoned, "They can't just run in here wands blazing. They have to plan it so they have less casualties and the best outcome."
Ginny nodded from her spot on the wall. "Makes sense."
Hermione went back to staring at the stone wall and trying to lose herself in her memories. The pain in her arm was starting to build again. Soon the burning would be unbearable. She kept feeling the knife reenter her skin, and the skin tearing as the steel carved a path through her arm. No matter what she tried to think about the pain eventually consumed her. Her last thought before passing out was of Draco and her father tearing the Order apart to find her.
Draco clenched his Death Eater mask in his hand and took deep breaths. They were about to start the raid of the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix to get Hermione back. He needed to be calm, quick, and precise. Malfoy's were lethal in combat and he was no exception. He had demanded that his father put him in the extraction team and with little argument his request had been granted. Voldemort had personally sided with him, and when the Dark Lord sides with you nobody is stupid enough to argue. Theo was the only other teenager in the extraction team. The rest had been placed in the diversion team.
The diversion team apparated into the back yard of Grimmauld Place and dumped a box full of decoy detonators into the grass. Blaise grinned at his father and friends as they hid in the surrounding trees until the Order members appeared to check on the commotion.
"Remember," Blaise whispered to his friends, "We're trying to decimate their numbers. Kill or wound as many as possible."
"We know Blaise," Pansy snapped from two trees away.
"Shh!" Astoria interrupted, "They're coming outside!"
Everyone held their breath as Arthur and Bill Weasley stepped into the backyard. Blaise looked to his father for the signal to start the battle. Zabini Senior shook his head and held up one finger. Just as the Weasleys had turned to head back into the house thinking that the commotion had been a prank of some sort Zabini Senior stepped out into the open.
"Arthur! Do come out and join me! It's been so long since I've murdered a blood traitor." He yelled across the yard.
Arthur paused, "Ah, Zabini, to what do I owe this honor? Surely you haven't come here alone. That would be unwise."
"Ha, Arthur you know that Death Eaters are never alone. We have real family." Zabini sneered, "Not this ally shit the Order tries to play."
"Yes, who could forget? Once a Death Eater, Always a Death Eater." Arthur growled stepping off the porch and into the yard. Bill followed close behind him.
Blaise stepped up behind his father and grinned, "Let's have a little fun."
"Stupefy!" Bill Weasley shouted flinging the spell at Blaise.
"Protego." Blaise yelled as he dove out of the way, "Attack!"
The other members of the diversion team stepped out of the woods and began casting spells and jinxes. Some of the team caused the back yard to light up with an eerie green light while others made their way into the house searching for other Order members to pull back outside. Pansy grinned as she pulled Fleur Delacour outside by her hair. The girl was cursing at her in French but she didn't care. She used the Crucio curse on Fleur until she screamed. The scream alerted Bill Weasley to his wife's pain and caused him to turn around just long enough for Blaise to cast the killing curse on him. Pansy through Fleur down into the mud and watched as she crawled to her husband's body and wept.
"Morsmordre!" Pansy cackled casting the Dark Mark into the sky.
Draco pulled himself out of his thoughts as the diversion team cast the Dark Mark into the air. That was the signal for the extraction team to move in. Draco pulled his mask into place and gripped his wand. Lucius nodded to his team and they all stepped up to the front of Grimmauld Place. Draco was the first one in the front door as the rest of the team followed behind him. They could hear the chaos in the backyard but it seemed that nobody was left inside the house. Charging down the hall he turned a sharp left and found the door leading to the basement. It wasn't even locked. Potter was so stupid, thinking that the Death Eaters wouldn't find his headquarters. Draco sneered as he pushed the door open and descended the stairs into the basement. Theo followed behind as the other members of the team took up guard positions at the top of the stairs, along the hallway, and at the front door.
Hermione heard the door open at the top of the stairs and immediately forced herself to stand up. Harry would not get the satisfaction of seeing her weak. Hermione frowned as whoever opened the door came down the stairs. There were two sets of footsteps but they weren't the normal jog of Harry or the stomps of Ron. Hermione gasped as Draco came into view with Theo following behind him. Ginny jumped up at her best friend's gasp and grinned, they were saved. Fred looked a little apprehensive, but stood by his sister waiting to see what they would do.
"I wasn't going to say I told you so but in light of recent events, I told you this would happen Granger! When are you going to start fucking listening to me?" Draco snapped as he walked over to the cell door, "Alohomora."
The door to the cell flashed white and an alarm sounded alerting the Order members that someone was trying to get into the prison cell. Draco growled and turned to Theo, "Get that thing to shut up and get this door open."
"Sure thing," Theo answered casting a series of inspection spells on the lock, "It looks like it needs a password to open it."
"Any idea what that might be?" Draco asked the three in the cell.
"Traitor?" Ginny suggested with a shrug.
"That's not it." Theo replied still casting spells trying to get the alarm to shut off.
Hermione sneered while holding her arm, "Try Mudblood."
Theo shook his head, "Not it."
"We don't have time for this," Draco snapped, "Get out of the way so I can blow it up."
"Wait!" Fred yelled looking from Hermione to Draco, "Try Malfoy's Mudblood."
Theo muttered the password under his breath while tapping the lock. The alarm for the cell immediately stopped and much to Draco's surprise the lock clicked open, "Why would Potter choose that as his password?"
"No idea," Hermione answered shooting Fred a look, "Can we get out of here?"
"Sure thing Hermione," Theo grinned pushing the cell door open, "After you."
Hermione shook her head, "No, you go first. We don't have wands."
"That's probably a good idea," Theo agreed falling into step behind Draco, "Can everyone manage without help?"
"Yeah, nobody has been hurt that badly," Fred called from the back of the group.
As the group reached the top of the stairs Draco let Theo take the lead as the others filed out of the basement. The guards that were waiting at the top of the stairs fell into step on either side of Ginny. Hermione came up next and tripped as she was climbing the last stair. Draco immediately reached out to steady her by grabbing her arm. Hermione screamed and jerked her arm out of his grasp taking a step away from him and cradling it close to her chest.
"Granger, what the hell?" Draco asked holding his hands up, "I'm not going to hurt you."
"I know, its fine," Hermione whimpered, "Just forget about it."
Draco's eyes narrowed as he turned his head to the side, "Granger. Let me see your arm."
"No." Hermione snapped taking another step away from him, "Just leave it alone Draco."
"Granger, let me see it. Now." Draco ordered taking a step towards her.
"Malfoy," Hermione glared, "I said no."
Theo appeared behind Hermione's left shoulder, "Guys we really don't have time for you two to argue right now. Can we please get a move on?"
"Sure Theo," Hermione agreed turning towards him, "Let's go."
Draco used her momentary distraction to grab her wrist and peel back the sleeve of her shirt to see her arm. Hermione hissed from the pain of her shirt rubbing the cuts but stayed silent and let him see. Draco froze as he mouthed the words carved into her arm. He looked up into Hermione's tear filled eyes and swore.
"Did Potter do this?" He asked quietly as he gently pulled her sleeve back over her damaged arm.
Hermione nodded as silent tears streamed down her face, "I beat the crap out of Ron. This was my punishment for that and betraying the Order."
Theo growled, "That son of a bitch."
"I'm going to fucking kill him," Draco whispered menacingly turning to head out the back of the house and find Potter.
"No Draco!" Hermione cried grabbing his arm with both of her hands, "Please don't. Not today. I just want to get out of here. Please. We can come back and deal with him later. I can't stand being here anymore. Don't make me stay a minute longer."
Draco sighed seeing how close his once best friend was to cracking from all of the pain and pressure she had been put through. He nodded once before taking her hand in his and leading the way again, "Alright. Let's get out of here."
The group headed back through the front of the house picking up more guards along the way. Once they reached the front door Lucius took over the team and began ushering them to the other side of the street.
Blaise growled as he sent a killing curse at Remus Lupin. The werewolf had hit him with a good curse and he was now nursing a gash across his forehead and another down his side. They needed to move out soon before they lost someone. There had only been about ten Order members in the house when they arrived but the extraction team was taking longer than planned. The more experienced Order members were starting to wear down the diversion team. Blaise cursed and ducked another curse from the werewolf when he saw the Dark Mark vanish from over the house.
"Move out!" Zabini Senior ordered having seen the Dark Mark disappear as well, "Retreat! Mission accomplished! Grab the wounded and pull back!"
Blaise immediately ran over to wear Pansy was protecting an unconscious Astoria and flung a hex at Tonks. Tonks ducked as the Sectumsempra spell shot towards her. Blaise grinned as he managed to catch the woman on the shoulder. Tonks cried out as the spell tore through her flesh. Others rushed to her aide giving Pansy and Blaise enough time to grab Astoria and retreat back behind Blaise's father.
"Now Dad!" Blaise called as the rest of the diversion group joined him.
Zabini Senior nodded pointing his wand at the sky and causing a huge thunderstorm to appear. Lighting immediately started striking the ground causing the Order members to retreat back inside. Once they were all running for cover Zabini Senior lowered his wand and gave the signal for his team to dissapparate.
Hermione immediately collapsed into a chair after Draco apparated her back to Malfoy Manor. They were all assembled in the meeting room after the rescue waiting for a debriefing. The Malfoy men had wanted to send her straight to Narcissa for treatment of her arm but she had refused. She wanted to know that everyone was alright and be sure that Ginny and Fred were settled in before she went off without them. Besides, Hermione wanted to talk to her father about initiation into the Death Eaters. She was ready to start her part in this war. She glanced at her hand still linked with Draco's. He hadn't let her go since seeing her arm back at Grimmauld Place, or said anything to her other than that he wanted her to let his mother look at it. Hermione wondered about this new protective side to Draco. She figured it was caused by seeing his surname carved into her arm, but then again.
Everyone fell silent as Voldemort entered the room. His eyes swept around the room until they fell on his daughter. He walked straight over to her and pulled her into a hug. The Death Eaters looked around at each other, a little thrown by this new display of affection from their master. Voldemort let Hermione go and immediately began checking her for injuries. He noted her broken nose, black eye, and slim frame. Finally his eyes flashed red as they fell on the arm that Hermione held close to her body.
"May I see your arm Hermione?" Voldemort asked holding out his hand.
Hermione cautiously held her arm forward allowing her father to roll the sleeve of her torn and bloody shirt back. The cuts stuck out sharply against her pale skin, and most of the men in the room growled as the women gasped. Voldemort inspected the cuts closely before releasing Hermione's arm.
"It appears that the cuts were done with an ordinary hunting knife." Voldemort explained, "That means that Narcissa will be able to heal them completely and without any scaring."
"No," Hermione objected pulling her sleeve back down, "I don't want them to disappear. I just want them healed, I'll keep the scars."
Voldemort met his daughter's eyes seeing the fire and determination in them he agreed, "Very well. Narcissa will see to it once we are done here."
Hermione nodded, "Thank you Father."
"Now, report. Zabini Senior, you first." Voldemort ordered taking his seat at the table.
Zabini Senior stood and began retelling the events of the night including the death of Bill Weasley and the injury of Nymphadora Tonks. Fred and Ginny paled hearing about the death of their brother but didn't say anything. Blaise helped him describe some of the other parts with Pansy explaining the Dark Mark and Astoria adding in how she had been knocked unconscious. Overall their part of the mission had gone perfectly according to plan. Voldemort nodded his approval before turning to Lucius Malfoy. Lucius explained the arrival at Grimmauld Place and then let Draco take over to explain the rest. Hermione watched Draco as he stood tall and explained entering the Headquarters of the Order and strategically placing guards along their escape route. He winced when he told Voldemort about the alarm on the cell and almost blowing it apart. However, Draco seemed to recover his confidence as he concluded with how they made it out the front door without running into any Order members. Hermione noticed that he left out the conversation between himself and her, but didn't figure that it really mattered as far as the plan so she didn't say anything.
"Well done all," Voldemort praised his Death Eaters, "You have returned my daughter to me without any casualties and I couldn't be happier. We dealt a hard blow to the Order today by taking a prisoner from under their noses. We will continue to take them down until there is nothing left. Now, we will deal with the questions and details of other matters later. Right now, we celebrate!"
Everyone cheered and began to exit the room to head downstairs and start celebrating their victory. Theo checked Astoria over before grabbing her hand and pulling her out the door. Blaise casually asked Ginny has she felt as they left the room following after Theo and Astoria. Hermione smiled when she saw them link hands as they turned the corner. Fred followed behind his sister somewhat subdued, but perked up when Pansy attempted to strike up a conversation with him. He could at least talk to this girl. She was very smart and appreciated a good prank.
"Now then," Narcissa Malfoy said taking her arm, "I'll get you cleaned up in no time, just relax."
Hermione nodded as Narcissa cast several spells on her arm and began cleaning the cuts. She gasped when a cold liquid was poured over the cuts but relaxed once the potion took effect and numbed her arm. The skin slowly knitted itself back together and Hermione smiled. Narcissa then wrapped her arm in a white bandage and started explaining what she wanted Hermione to do.
"First off, you can't get that wet for a few days. If the skin around the healed cuts gets to soft they'll split back open and trust me it will be painful. Also, no alcohol because it can react badly with the numbing potion. I'm giving you a small pain relieving potion because you will still be sore for about a week. Come find me at least once a day to check on how well it's healing and don't sleep on your arm." Narcissa ordered gently handing Hermione a small vial of potion.
"Yes Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione answered standing up, "Thank you."
"You're welcome dear," Narcissa whispered giving her a hug, "We're just glad to have you back. Especially Draco he was a mess when you left."
"I think I can speak for myself thank you mother," Draco interrupted from behind Hermione, "I wasn't a mess. I was just temperamental."
Hermione smiled, "Aren't you always."
"Exactly my point," Draco replied grabbing her hand to lead her away from his mother, "I was acting completely normal."
"Sure you were," Hermione agreed rolling her eyes while following him out into the hall, "Where are you taking me?"
Draco chuckled, "Don't sound so worried Granger; we are just going to join in the festivities. But you aren't allowed to drink. Healer's orders. I'll be by your side all night to make sure that you listen to my mother's demands."
"When have I ever broken the rules?" Hermione demanded as they entered the living room where everyone had congregated to party.
Draco shot her a look, "Don't get me started."